


The Blinds

by FanFQueen



Category: Original Work
Genre: Character Turned Into Vampire, F/M, Major Original Character(s), Original Character(s), Romance, Vampire Mate, Vampires, Werewolf, Werewolf Mates, blinds, highschool, kingdom - Freeform, oc x oc - Freeform, original character x original character - Freeform, vampire
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-05-12
Updated: 2019-09-03
Packaged: 2020-03-01 09:09:36
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 15
Words: 54,534
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18797308
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/FanFQueen/pseuds/FanFQueen
Summary: Lights off. Curtains shut. And Blinds closed. And, under no circumstances, do you look out the window.No one is allowed to look or go outside from 12:00 A.M. to 5:30 A.M. or they risk being noticed and taken by those called "The Night Prowlers." No one knows who they are, or more importantly, what they are. People out late may be taken and never seen again, or if they are seen, are in coffins at their funeral. Everyone is afraid of the unknown monster that terrorizes the country, but no one is brave enough to find out what it is.Eloise Wilson is curious about the infamous "Night Prowlers," but doesn't dare to find out more. Her life was simple- nothing too bad but also nothing too exciting. But, Eloise wishes for more and feels like something is missing in her life. Though that all changes when she meets a mysterious and handsome man who plans to donate money to her school. Eloise's life changes forever. From losing her dog to being kidnapped, this girl is going to be way over her head. But, these sudden changes could be what unknowingly saves her from herself.Follow Eloise as her life goes from monotonous to hectic in the world of the Night Prowler Kingdom and their King- Goodwin.





	1. Chapter 1

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ~Edited~

"Eloise!" I heard my name yelled from down the hallway. I looked up from my school laptop and looked around the crowded hallway. I soon noticed my friend Eden Rowell running down the hallway.

Eden is a bubbly girl with light brown hair and dark green eyes. She is a pretty girl with clear skin and a beautiful smile. Her hair is always either in a braid or down and she never wears sweatshirts. She is a cheerleader on the Brothers in Christ high school cheer squad and her boyfriend also goes to that school. She, like almost everyone else, is obsessed with our brother school but I don’t see the appeal. The boys are just plain, selfish idiots who think with their junk and not their brain. But, I try not to judge every time she comes to me freaking out because her period is late and she believes she is pregnant.

I made room on the floor beside me for her to sit and seconds later she plopped down beside me. Her backpack made a loud bang as it hit the floor. She must have been running late this morning.

"Morning. What's up?" I asked her.

Eden took a deep breath and started to unpack her things, "Okay, so you're going to get mad at me, b-"

"What did you do!" I interrupted her. Knowing her, I was nervous about what she was about to say.

She opened her locker and started shoving her books inside, "Okay, so I may or may not have flipped off Imogen," Eden said as she looked everywhere with her green dark green eyes but for me.

I gasped in shocked, "What! Why?" I grabbed her arm to prevent her from distracting herself. She looked at me and groaned. She grabbed the uniform skirt and started rolling it up.

"I just couldn't stand it anymore. She is just so petty. They all are! I just got so tired of it, so I had to do something," Eden said as she laid her back against the locker. Her fists clenched in anger, but her face was as calm as can be. She wasn’t one to make a spectacle of herself because she was normally really shy so this outburst of emotion from her was kind of a shock.

"Wow..." I said as thought about how Imogen must have reacted.

I figured this was coming, but not so soon! It’s only the seconds quarter! Eden and Imogen used to be best friends, but then Imogen started hanging out with Dia the Devil. Eden didn’t like Dia but everyone else did so she had to put up with Dia’s bitchy, rude, and selfish attitude Eventually Imogen and all of Eden’s old friends started kissing up to Dia and started being bitchy, and rude, and overall stupid. They started to ignore Eden and eventually me because I hung out with Eden. It didn’t bother me too much because I wasn't really friends with Imogen but we were at least friendly. Eventually, things got worse and Imogen started planning things with their new friend without Eden. She would even plan events right in front of her face and not even invite her. Imogen and those girls didn't even come to Eden's Sweet 16 party last year. She said she was out of town, but her Snapchat story said otherwise.  
"Be careful. Just ignore them and move on. Promise?" I asked her as she sat down beside me and organized her books. 

She grabbed her sloth pencil pouch and pretended like it was speaking for her. The sloth was given a high pitched voice, “Don’t worry Eloise. This girl won’t get into any more trouble.”  
She smiled at me from behind the sloth pencil pouch as I laughed. Her shoulders relaxed as she laughed. Her eyes crinkled and the dimple on her cheek showed as she laughed her light laugh.

I checked the time on my watch and saw it was 7:55. I looked down the hallway and saw my other friends running down the crowded hallway. Their hair in their signature messy buns, uniforms messy, and backpacks spilling open. Eden quickly stopped laughing and suddenly stood up. She fixed her skirt and then ran over to Karen.

Karen Howe and Tina Marsh ride to school together because they live in the same neighborhood. It is close to school but they are always late. They leave at 7:20 and only live 10 minutes away, but they always go for a "quick coffee run" that lasts 20 minutes and then have to rush down the hall with their half-full Macchiatos and Chia tea with no foam, no whip, 2 pumps of Chai, extra sugar, etc... They are the literal definition of white girls except Karen is Indian and Tina is Japanese.

My group of friends is pretty diverse, but I use the term friends loosely. Karen, Eden, and I had a fallout during our sophomore year over a club we started. It was really stupid but they still seem to hold a grudge. The only time they don’t seem to have a grudge against me is when they aren’t together. When they are together they both tend to ignore me and will give me odd looks, but keep them separate and you’d think I was their best friend. Tina is the only one who stayed neutral during the whole thing because she was new to the school and wasn’t friends with us yet.

Though, Karen and Eden aren’t bad people. We just have our disagreements but that doesn’t make them horrible people. I can’t speak for the rest of the people in this school. A rumor was going this week that last weekend some seniors snorted cocaine at a party, but, not just any party, it was a party for her parent’s divorce. I was just as shocked as everyone else but also dumbfounded. Cocaine at a divorce party? Really?

Tina walked up to me with a smile and helped me stand up from the ground. I collected my things for class and then walked down the hallway with her since we have our first class together- English 3. 

“Hey, did you remember your extra blazer? I forgot mine this morning because I totally forgot we had mass. Why do we even have to go to mass? I’m not even Catholic?” Tina said as we made our way through the crowded hallway.

Today is Wednesday and every Wednesday we have a mass. The entire upper school, which is only 300 people not including faculty, goes into the theatre and has mass. We go to a Catholic school called Saint Seton Academy. It's a small school even though it holds a JK-8th grade for boys and JK-12th grade for girls. So, I go to an all-girls high school where the gossip is always running, girls either care way too much about their appearance or not enough, and all the guy teachers are old, married, or weird. 

I laughed, “Yeah, I brought it. I don’t get it either, but lets at least be respectful and go. I’m not Catholic either, but I either use that time for personal reflection or thinking about random things.” We arrived at the door of our English teacher, but it was locked so we stood outside the door waiting. “Speaking of random things, are you excited for the new season premiere of ‘The Strange Happenings of Elderwood?’”

Tina gasped in delight and started bouncing up and down excitedly, “Omg, yes! I heard a rumor that your favorite man might be making an appearance again!”

“Really! Now I’m even more pumped for this season. I can’t wait to see Brahms Clare and all of his sexy vampire self again,” I said excitedly as people hurried walked past us to get to their classes.

Tina laughed, “You’re obsessed with him and his suits.”

I groaned, “I can’t help it that he is a made beautifully crafted by God who can rock a suit like nobody’s business. I’m just saying, men in suits are so hot.”

The teacher started to unlock the door as Tina rolled her eyes at my ridiculous attraction to men in suits. I don’t know why I find it so attractive, but I just know that men in suits look good. I feel like it compliments most men. Suits can be customized and men can wear a different tie or bowtie designs and the slimmer pants make them look taller and slim. I especially like men with dark hair and dark eyes and a little stubble. It’s even better if he’s wearing a suit. I’m getting ahead of myself, but I just love men in suits, especially a navy color. Hot damn.

 

☾ ⋆*･ﾟ:⋆*･ﾟ:⠀ *⋆.*:･ﾟ .: ⋆*･ﾟ: .⋆

 

After my first two classes of the day, English, and Video and Photography, the entire school headed to Wednesday mass. My school’s schedule is unique in the fact that we run on a changing block schedule. For instance my classes and their corresponding blocks are: Chemistry is my Block A, Latin is Block B, Honors World History is Block C, Honors Geometry is Block D, Power to Lead in the Modern World is Block E, English is Block F, and Video and Photography in Block G. My schedule goes in the same pattern every day except Wednesday. On Monday I have Blocks A-C and then homeroom, then lunch, then blocks D-F. Block G happens on Monday morning and then after that is blocks A and B then homeroom, then lunch, then C-E blocks. My schedule essentially rotates and on Wednesday, because of mass, we only have two blocks in the morning, F and G, and then mass, homeroom, lunch, then my last two classes A and B block. I have every class 4 days out of 5 so that way it can give me another day to do the homework for that class.

Our schedule is more confusing than it sounds, but it is amazing when you get an extra day to study for a test. Especially on Wednesdays, because we even get out an hour earlier than normal. Mass is annoying in the sense that we sit in hard bleachers for an hour and 40 minutes, but it does give me some time to think.

Lately, the thing on my mind is the Night Prowlers. The Night Prowlers aka the terror to society, aka the menaces on the night, aka monsters from our nightmares that stop us from going out at night. If we go outside of the legal time allowed then we can be taken, killed, or tortured by those evil beings. No one has made it back alive if they were attacked because they were either found dead in the street or their bodies were never found. The Night Prowlers impede on our human existence, yet the public barely knows anything about them. At night, we live in fear, yet we have no idea what we are fearful of. Some say they are aliens (#September20), some say that they are mutated beings made by the government to keep us in control, and others say they are wild animals that only hunt viciously at night. Most, including myself, fear what we don’t understand and shy away from it all. But, just because I’m fearful doesn’t mean it curves my curiosity of the truth.

This morning I was watching the news to see if there was any more information on the Night Prowlers and found out that a group of college kids was murdered last night. The police are still looking into it, but I think it was the Night Prowlers. I mean, who else would murder a group of college kids at night. It may have been a human, but it was 2-3 adult males and they weren’t intoxicated. It had to be a Night Prowlers.

Though, no one else seems to be interested in them and act as if they do not exist. I once saw a theory that some are human and are planted in society to spy on us and maybe walking amongst us. What I don't get is how people ignore their existence and pretend that everything is okay. High school girls go out late at night to party at the music festivals without their parents or any type of protection and somehow come back unharmed. 

The Night Prowlers mostly leave humans alone. I say this because there seems to be a pattern of who they attack. I’ve noticed that it is mostly people who tend to have criminal records or are doing bad things. Though, there have been some instances of people leaving their house late at night and getting attacked and murdered even though they weren’t doing anything. The police don't push the blame on the Night Prowlers right away, but we all know who really did it. Plus, people go missing all the time, but people don't randomly disappear every night. I’m not saying that people don’t disappear for no reason, but not at least 10 every night.

I've only heard of people getting attacked by Night Prowlers in the night, though it makes sense since they are called Night Prowlers. Maybe they can only come out at night? Maybe they can't walk in the sun? Maybe they look so hideous and can't blend in during the day so they have to only come out at night when its dark? Maybe it's a gang of people who have a sensitivity to sunlight? That last one just doesn't sound right…

Either way, the only person besides me that is interested in the mysterious disappearances and Night Prowlers is Tina. She is a wild child when she is with her friends, but acts innocent and shy at school. We trade theories and stories and sometimes read fanfiction together. We love reading about people’s ridiculous theories on the Night Prowlers. For example, we've read stories about them being mermaids, pirates, ghost pirates, people from another dimension, aliens, vampires, werewolves, ghosts, demons, and a lot more beings. Though, Tina and I can both agree on one thing: the fanfictions about Night Prowlers being vampires and werewolves are the best.

 

☾ ⋆*･ﾟ:⋆*･ﾟ:⠀ *⋆.*:･ﾟ .: ⋆*･ﾟ: .⋆

 

When I unlocked the house door, I immediately heard the familiar little jingle of my dog's collar. I shut and locked the door and put my car keys in the little bowl by the front door. Moose, our dog, slowly and clumsily got up out of his bed and walk over to me with his big, black tail wagging. His eyes sparkled at realizing I was home to keep him company.  
“Hi, Moose! How are you, baby? Did you miss me?” I asked happily as he jumped up and down a small bit. I pet him and rubbed his belly as I gave him a treat, or two, or three.

Once I stood up he followed me into the kitchen. I immediately went into the pantry and took the jar of Nutella. I was really craving some chocolate and plus it's super addictive. Mom and I swear it was made by the devil because we eat so much of it that it's probably sinful. Mom always says after she ‘accidentally’ eats a whole jar that Nutella is too good put down and God will just have to accept the fact she is a Nutella crackhead.

My mom is a criminal justice lawyer for a local firm. She works most days and is in court a lot. Her days tend to be pretty long, but she always takes the weekends off to spend it with me if she can. My mom, Lily Wilson, has won most of her cases and is passionate about what she does, though some cases wear on her more than others. If that happens, we have a girl day and watch movies, read, get our nails done, go shopping, or eat the food we aren't supposed to eat. We both happen to be gluten and dairy intolerant, but we eat ice cream and bread anyway because it’s way too good to give up. She's honestly my best friend other than another person. We get along really well unless it's that time of the month, then we can both be really cranky.

My dad, Christopher Wilson, is always traveling. He works for the government but I don’t know exactly what he does. I think he’s a spokesperson who goes around from state to state and makes sure things are good or personally delivers things. I don't really know what he does because it’s apparently top secret. When I was younger I used to imagine that my dad was a negotiator between the human world and the fairy world and also hung out with aliens on the weekends. 

Though, eventually, I gave up wondering what he did and accepted that he wasn’t going to be around much. Dad only comes home once every couple of weeks to every other month. I don’t see him much when he is home because of school and he’s always gone during the summertime. In fact, we’ve only had 3 family vacations in my lifetime and I’ve gotten pretty used to being alone.

Most days I am home alone until around 5 or 6 P.M. and then mom makes dinner or we go out and then we watch a movie. Though, on trial days she can be home anywhere from 3 to 8 P.M. Her schedule is always changing but she does the best she can to be there to support me.  
The one person who has always been there for me is our family dog Moose. He’s been with us since I can remember and one of my first memories is of getting him. He favors my mom more, but I named him. He was the sweetest dog and loved to play with me in the small sandpit we used to have. We would run around together and play and I told him all my problems. He would always be there to cuddle when I had a bad day at school, which was pretty common, and comforted me when I had a nightmare. I was pretty lonely as a kid with both my parents working, no siblings, no friends, and a family that lived far away. But, no matter what, he was always there.  
Moose looked up at me and started wagging his tail. I bent down and started petting him and messing with his ears. “Who is the bestest boy? You are!” I said before I kissed his wet nose. He licked my face and I laughed. I stood up and grabbed a treat from him. “Sit,” I said. He sat and looked up at me happily with his tongue out. I smiled and fed him the treat. He happily gobbled it up and slowly walked back to his bed. He laid down at watched me and I laughed and shook my head. Silly dog.  
I headed upstairs and changed into a t-shirt and shorts before I started doing my homework. My room was pretty cold so I also put on my ‘I need my space Nasa’ sweatshirt and sat at my clutter filled desk. To me, it was organized chaos, but my mom absolutely hates how cluttered it was. I sat down in my blue desk chair and opened my backpack to start the abundance of homework for tonight.

 

☾ ⋆*･ﾟ:⋆*･ﾟ:⠀ *⋆.*:･ﾟ .: ⋆*･ﾟ: .⋆

 

Surprisingly, homework only took me 3 hours and that includes studying. It was 6:27 when I looked at the clock and sighed because I was hungry. I grabbed my earbuds and phone and went downstairs to heat up some pizza rolls. When I walk past Moose I see that he is sleeping soundly on his bed. I smile and quietly grab his food bowl. I open the garage door and cringe when I hear the alarm charm. I forget that the new alarm charms whenever a door or window is opened. I scoop his food into his bowl and set it down for him to eat later.  
I watch him and smile. He's so cute! He has some gray fur around his mouth and paws and it just makes him even cuter. Though my smile turns into a frown and I have to turn away. I take a deep breath and bite my lip to stop myself from crying. We might have to put him down soon because his cancer came back. The vet and my mom agreed that he's too old to survive chemotherapy, and they already removed some cancer that appeared on his tail, but they found another one on his toe earlier this week. He’s starting to not be able to walk well anymore. I just don’t want to put my best friend down.  
I shake my head and sniff as I try to ignore it. I would rather ignore it because he won’t die. I know he won’t because he can’t just leave me like that. He’s the only person besides my best friend that's been there for me, though I haven’t heard from her in years.  
I opened Spotify and clicked on my “Secret Indulgence” playlist and randomly clicked on a song. I smiled when the beat of “I’m In Love With a Monster” by Fifth Harmony started playing. As I sang along I placed the pizza rolls into the mini oven and set the dials. I started dancing and singing around the kitchen as the pizza rolls cooked.  
I had a bad habit of being in my mind too much when I was alone, but it honestly helped me a lot. I have been listening to music and going into my head ever since I was younger. I always went there when I was sad, had too many emotions running through my head, whenever I had anxiety, and whenever I needed to be truly alone. My brain was my happy place and I was comfortable just thinking about stories and creating characters and plots for hours. Now, I use my headspace as a place to think complicated things through, to cope with certain situations and or bad grades, and to lift up my spirits when I was having a bad day. I tended to be in my head a lot when I was alone, but I never felt lonely in my head.  
My phone buzzed and I looked at it confused for a second. It was an email from a teacher at our school who practically ran everything. She was super peppy, loved school spirit, loved us to be the independent woman we are, and she was super busy. She got annoying after 3 years of listening to her preach about the same things over and over again but then would contradict herself. For example, she went on a 20-minute rant during one of our weekly assemblies about how we should be a strong independent woman and that we shouldn’t have to rely on boys. Then not even 5 seconds after she was explaining how the girls needed BOY dates for the next dance and couldn’t bring their girl friends and the boys would have to pay in order for them to get in. In my opinion, she was ridiculous. But, I digress, the email was on a very different topic from normal.

LADIES~ Exciting news!

Tomorrow during our assembly we will be having a businessman stop by. If you see him make sure to give him a warm welcome and a SMILE. Be sure to be on your BEST behavior! He is here to visit the school and look into our amazing academy! His niece will be coming to check out the school later on next week so make sure to be kind! We want to WELCOME our future stars!

If he stops by and asks you questions please respond politely and, if you don't know something, politely explain you don't know. I know you'll represent our academy and will make sure they know we are shining STARS!!!  
Dr. Linnet

I read the email and immediately deleted it afterward. They act as if we are hooligans and don't know how to behave. And, I can honestly see through this email. It's probably someone who is potentially donating to the school or coming to see if this school deserves an award or not. It's ironic and funny. I mean, if they get a donation then fix the damn science building that breaks every quarter and change the dirty, old lockers. All they do is partially fix a problem and don’t want to permanently fix a problem.  
The timer for my pizza rolls goes off and I start playing the next song. I put my classy pizza rolls on a super, classy paper plate and fix myself a refreshing cup of Sprite. Ah, food for royals.  
I turn on the T.V. and sit down with my pizza rolls. I turn off my music and turn on the T.V. to watch some random show when the news starts declaring an NPRD. NPRD stands for "Night Prowler Related Death." For some reason, I stop myself from changing the channel and look up to see the faces of 2 young men on the screen.  
"Early this morning local college students Edd Murphy and James Wilson were found murdered in an alley close to their dorms. Friends say the two went out to get drinks and never returned. A friend of the two says, 'they were just the nicest people. I don't understand how those vicious Night Prowlers, whatever they are, could murder someone with such a good heart.' The police are still looking into this murder and will come out with more details soon,” The reporter said on the T.V. behind her blue and red lights flashed and policemen walked hurriedly around behind her.  
I turned the T.V. to another channel and swallowed. Another death. One after the other. No one seems to care and if they do, they surely aren’t doing anything to prevent the deaths. I shook my head and take a deep breath before going back to my dinner. I might as well ignore it as everyone else does.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There are two parts to this chapter told from two perspectives. One is from a mysterious POV and one is from another main character.
> 
> This chapter IS edited (there still may be some mistakes)
> 
> Part 1 of this chapter is currently posted and part two will come later and will be located under part 1 but is still a part of chapter 2 and will not get its own chapter. If this is confusing, check back sometime next week to see if this note has changed to say all parts are added. I
> 
> wanted to give something edited out to all my fans! Like, comment, and follow! It means a lot and helps me keep writing!

Part 1 -Pov Unknown-

My legs hung over the ledge of the local bakery's roof. It was a beautiful night out and it was peaceful for once. The full moon shone brightly in the sky and the stars were clearer. Ever since the curfew was put out for all citizens it has made the air clearer. No cars, no factory workers, no office lights on - just peace and quiet. I inhaled the sweet city air and watched as a fat city rat walked near the edge a few feet away from me.

The rat’s innocent eyes look at me and sniffed. It neared me and sniffed me again. I held out my hand and it sniffed it before it climbed onto my hand and up my arm. Its claws clutched my clothing and dug into my skin, but I didn’t mind it too much.

It hopped down into my lap and stared at me. “You like the night? I know I do,” I said as I pet the rat. It looked up into the night sky and just watched the stars. I whispered good night to the rat before I took it into my hands and snapped its neck. It fell limp into my hands and my heart felt a tiny pang of guilt.

I drank the rats blood and then gently laid him on the root. I licked my lips and then looked up into the night sky. Cruel, cruel world. The sound of laughter drew me to a crowd of people who walked about 2 blocks down the street. I immediately noticed them and waved. They all waved back and yelled back a greeting. I went to the ledge of the building and watched as they quickly approached.

“Got yourself into trouble yet, boss?” One of them yelled from across the deserted street. His friends laughed and all stopped walking to stare up at me.

I laughed and flashed them a smile, “Of course! What else would I be doing?” They all laughed.

“What about yourselves? Got into any trouble lately?” I asked as I saw a little something hiding behind some of the people. “What have you got there?” I asked at a gestured my head to the back of the crowd.

Hiding in the crowd stood a little girl holding a stuffed dog that definitely wasn’t in the best shape. She had tears streaming down her cheeks and was clutching the hand of one of my friends. She was about 3 feet tall with curly black hair, dark skin, and a torn dress.

“Ahh, I see,” I said as I inspected the young girl. She must’ve gotten lost or ran away from home. Though, by the look of those prominent bruises on her arms, I’m going to say she ran away. Abuse maybe? “Make sure she goes to a good home,” I said as I flashed a smile.

“Of course,” came a female from the crowd.

“Well, get on with it then. Make sure she gets a thorough background check and send her to the club, “I ordered to them.

The crowd bowed, “Yes, boss.” Then they started to walk away but the small girl couldn’t keep up so one of them picked her up and carried her. The girl stared at me as she sucked on her thumb. She gave me a small wave as the crowd turned the street corner. I smiled and waved back. Children, so innocent and lovely.

I smiled, we got another one. I tilted my head back to look at the stars. Stars are one of the untainted things left in this world, but soon it shall be polluted as well.

“I said leave me alone! I’m not interested. You’re being recorded so please leave me alone,” echoed the voice of a woman.

I stood up and listened closely. “Oh, come on. You’re too pretty to be all alone at night like this. Let us escort you home before some evil men take you away,” this time a man spoke. The sound was coming from the street behind me.

I jumped off the roof and walked down the dark alleyway and onto the next street. There was no one on the street except for 2 males and 1 female who was walking quite fast. The female was clutching her coat tightly to herself and held her phone in her hand. The two men, I mean boys, were followed her as they catcalled her.

“Yeah, after we bring you safely home then you can give us a reward for going out of our way,” said the other male. These boys were clearly drunk college students.

I crossed the empty street and followed the drunk boys. The boys continued to catcall her as she tried to politely tell them to ‘fuck off.’ I casually walked behind them and waited until they made their move. They hadn’t even noticed I was behind them, so clearly their focus was just on the female.

The girl was limping as she walked and was trying her best to get away from them. She had flats on but her knees were bent at odd angles making it hard for her to walk. She was probably born with some disability and that made her an easier target.

I snarled, “Cowards.” I fasted my pace but stayed far back enough for them not to notice. I scanned the area ahead and noticed a blue flashing light on a lamp post a few shops down. The blue flashing light meant that under it was a police camera and was recording what was going on. I smirked and pulled up my hoodie over my head. I kept my head down but continued to focus on the males.

Soon, the boys both broke into a slight jog to catch up to her and the girl, in his haste, tripped and fell onto the pavement. She cried out and hit the ground in frustration with her fist.  
The smell of A negative quickly filled the air and the woman tried her best to get up. I ground my teeth together and took a deep breath to calm myself. I was shaking in anger by the time the boys reached her and forcefully pulled her up.

The boys hollered and yelled and laughed as the woman screamed at them to let her go. She was able to jerk her arm away from them and was able to spray some pepper spray at one of them. One of the boys screamed as the pepper spray got into his eyes. The other male released her arm to help his friend and was distracted enough for her to kick him in the balls. The males both groaned in pain as the woman hurriedly tried to get up.

The boys, in their blinding anger, blindly grabbed out for her and dragged her into an alleyway. She was screaming and punched one of them in the nuts with her fist. I wanted to applaud her for her bravery and fighting sense but now was not the time.

I quickly looked around my surroundings for any witnesses. Once I was sure there was no one to watch me I went after the two drunk college boys. I walked calmly and kept my head down because of the police camera. If the police happened to look back on the video, I didn’t need them looking me up or trying to get a face I.D. I made it to where the alleyway opened up and I continued to hear the woman's screams. Her heart was pounding furiously from fear and I could tell the scrape on her knee was bad. The boy’s hearts, on the other hand, were beating from adrenaline. They were excited to sexually abuse this woman.

“Fucking sick,” I said in a growl as I followed them into the alleyway. I pulled my hoodie back and saw the boys forcefully holding her down with all their might. She spits in their faces and cursed them out as loud as she could. Gotta admit the woman’s got the fighting spirit.

“Shut her up dude!” One yelled as they struggled to keep her hold down.

“I’m trying you asshole! I just got fucking pepper-sprayed by this bitch!” The other one yelled. “Shut up!”

“I will when I’m dead you fucking creeps. Even then, I’ll haunt your asses for the rest of your goddamned life!”

The boy who got pepper sprayed raised his hand to slap her, but I caught his hand before he even got a chance. In one swift movement, I lifted him off the ground and threw him against the opposite wall. When he hit the wall, I’m pretty sure he shattered his arm. Oh well. The other boy in shock looked from his friend who slumped down the wall unconscious to me.

“Fine night isn’t it?” I said as I flashed my elongated fangs. The boy let go of the female's arm and crawled away from her. “Why were you bothering this woman, boy?” He crawled back into the alleyway and I followed him. He looked up at me with a face of pure fear.

“D-Don’t hurt me,” The boy begged at he hit the dead end of the alleyway.

I mocked him, “D-Don’t hurt me!” I laughed, “That’s what everyone says. Now, what should your punishment be for assaulting this woman?” I pretended to think about it before I cast a wicked grin. The man coward back onto the wall. He wanted to disappear through that wall, but sadly, only ghosts and witches could do that.

“Why not make up for it with your life? Hm? It’s been so long since I’ve drunk from the tap,” I smirked as I bent down and looked him in the eye.

“What are you? What the hell are you!” The boy yelled at me. I grabbed his shirt collar and forced him up and against the wall. “Before I drain you, why don’t you grovel and apologize to this woman that you assaulted.”

“I didn’t assault nobody!” The boy yelled as he thrashed around.

“Playing that game? Fine.” I dragged him towards the shaking woman who was frozen in place. She didn’t look at me until I shoved the boy in front of her and forced him to bow on his hands and knees. She held her stomach and had tears streaming down her face.

I listened and realized why she clutched her stomach. She was pregnant, very early in her pregnant actually. “I mean you no harm Miss.” I smiled at her and tipped a pretend hat on my hat. The woman just stared at me as tears streamed down her face.

“Now, apologize you scum,” I said as I pushed the boy harder into the pavement.

“I-I’m sorry. We’re sorry. We’re drunk and we don’t mean any-” “No excuses. Actually apologize,” I growled out.

“I-I’m sorry. We’ll even go to the police station with you so you can file an assault charge,” The boy yelled out as tears streamed down his face. He was sobbing and clutched the woman's barefoot as he apologized.

She took her foot from his hand and just stared at him for a second. Her face was completely blank and her tears stopped but shone on her face. “I never want to see your face again. Go. Leave your friend here to suffer.”

I stared at the woman in shock. She was going to let her assaulters go? I looked at her for reassurance and that's when she caught my eye. She is in shock and angry, but she is still going to let them go. I did as she said and lifted up the guy by the back of his collar.

“The nice woman here is letting you go. What do you say?”

“T-Thank you. Thank you,” He sobbed over and over again. I wanted to cringe, his breath smelt of strong alcohol, jalapeno peppers, and, for some reason, peanut butter.

“Look at me,” I said to the boy before I looked at him. He looked at me and he immediately went limp, awake but not in control. “Forget about me. Just remember that you and your friend assaulted a girl and if you ever assault anyone ever again a monster is coming after you. The woman saved your life this time, but next time your life will be the monsters.” I tossed him away and watched as he scrambled away.

I looked down at the woman who sat motionless on the ground looking at the unconscious body of her other assaulter.

“He’s alive. Don’t worry,” I flashed her a smile and she jumped in shock. Oops, forgot about the fangs.

Part II 

  
  
  


☾ ⋆*･ﾟ:⋆*･ﾟ:⠀ *⋆.*:･ﾟ .: ⋆*･ﾟ: .⋆

      Draven

 

“Let me get this straight. You two fought because she ruined your favorite apron,” I asked as I looked at two of my servants. They both worked in the kitchen, and this is the first time they've fought in centuries.

“Yes, my King,” They both responded with downcast faces.

“And this fight is what destroyed this kitchen?” I asked as I leaned back in my chair. One of the guards who stood by the door started to chuckle. I gave him a look to be quiet, and he immediately silenced.

I sighed in frustration, “You BOTH are on cleaning duty in the kitchen until you’ve cleaned up your mess. I will find new appliances later, so focus on cleaning up. Report back to me when you’re done. Dismissed.” The two servants bowed and quickly left my study.

I looked at the two guards who stood at the door, “You can leave too Bernard and Jack. Go spend time with your families.”

The guards bowed and thanked me before leaving. They closed the door, and I was finally able to loosen my tie and take off my blazer. Suits are dashingly handsome but can be a pain in my ass after wearing one for too long.

Speaking of a pain in my ass, the wrecked kitchen is a significant pain in my ass. I do admit that the kitchen needed remodeling since it was last remodeled in the early 1900s, but still, I preferred the old, sturdy stoves compared to the plastic ones these days. Though, Brahms has been saying for ages that the kitchen needed remodeling and that I was waiting for something to happen so that I could fix it up. The one thing he forgets, though, is that I know little about today’s technology.

If my mate is in this era, then she better be ready to explain all the technology. I stopped following after people moved to portable computers and flip phones. Apparently, there are cordless headphones now. I swear we live in an era of sorcery, but I wouldn’t put it against the witches to try to influence human culture and technology. Humans are very entertaining to watch.

Though I’ve been alive for 2 World Wars and during that time, I still haven’t found my mate. My soul mate. My other half. Just thinking about how old I am, or the lack of how old I look makes me want a drink. I’ll need another drink because I’ve been without a partner for close to a millennium.

I went to the whiskey cabinet situated on one of the far walls and opened it. I searched through it for a minute before I found a bottle I liked and then poured myself a glass. I down it quickly and pour myself another one.

As I downed my second glass, a knock came to the door. The door opened and in came my friend and successor. If anything should happen to me, he will be the next to rule the thrown. We’ve grown up together and have known each other since we were children, many centuries ago.

“Drinking already?” Brahms said as he shut the door and confidently walked over to me. I ignored him and poured more vodka. He took the bottle from my hand and inspected it, “Good choice.”

“It’s a great choice. I wouldn’t settle for anything less,” I grumbled as I set down my glass.

He put his hands up in surrender, “Someone woke up on the wrong side of his coffin.” He chuckled to himself as I glared at him. “Just trying to lighten the mood,” he paused to bow, “my king.”

“Ass,” I said as I walked over to my desk and looked at the stack of reports. Brahms laughed hysterically at his jokes.

I ended up chuckling from how stupid he was. “And the broody king laughs! I’ve done my job,” Brahms said as he walked towards the stack of files and paper on my desk. 

He picked a sheet up and inspected it, “So, what’s going to happen to the kitchen?”

“I don’t know. I’ll hire someone to find good, reliable appliances. I don’t have time to go out and get things personally,” I said as I sat down in my desk chair.

“I could always go for you. You always put everything on yourself and push yourself too hard. Take a break for once! You’ve been working nonstop since you’re parents left to travel, and you took the throne. Let me help you!” Brahms rambled for the billionth time. He always fusses that I work too hard, I never get a break, and that the council is so far up my ass that I can’t even take a shit without getting interrupted.

“You’re right. I do work too much.”

“Wait. What was that” Brahms paused. “Did you just say that I, Brahms Hellsham, is right!”

“Yes.”

“Damn. I keep getting lucky today.”

“Lucky?”

“Yes! This morning I woke up to my beautiful fiance, then I was able to plan the new design for the kitchen, and now I get told by my friend that I’m right,” Brahms said happily as he motioned dramatically with his hands. He has a bad habit of talking with his hands.

“Let me guess. You’re here to-” he interrupted, “test my luck even more. Correct.” He pulled a chair up to my desk and sat in it. He pulled out a notebook from his suit pocket and flipped to a page. “Now, I’ve done some research, and I’ve tested this out myself, so you don’t need to worry about it being fake. I found this lady who can predict your future.”

I rolled my eyes and rubbed my forehead, “Here we go again.”

“Wait, wait, wait. Before you leave, I want you to know that this lady is legit. She asked me if I was dating anyone, and I told her no. Then she laughed and pointed to my heart and said, ‘but you’re heart says otherwise. Pretty, young, human, and silly- just your type.’”

“So, she’s supernatural?”

“Yes. I’ve done all the research, and she checks out. She’s legit.”

I waited for him to continue, “And?”

“And, I was wondering if you’d want me to set up an appointment to see if she can help you find your soulmate?” He slid the small, green notebook over towards me. I looked up and him and then towards the notebook. He motioned for me to pick it up, and so I did.

In his barely legible cursive, he wrote:

 

Madam Ismene - prophet? Fortune teller? Both?

  * Background check √
  * Actual session √
  * Speak with other clients √
  * Get Draven to agree



Business stationed in New Orleans, Louisiana

Shop name: The Blind Teller

 

I put the notebook down and looked at him, “Why should I go? Plus, how will I get someone to cover for me?”

“I could. I’d even talk to the council for you. I’m sure they’ll give you a break when I mention that the King wants to dedicate some time to find his Queen.”

“You’re not taking over my work. You’ll be coming with me if I go. I don’t trust this Madam Ismene enough to go alone.”

Brahms slammed his hands down on the table, “Hot damn! My luck must be oozing from everywhere if I got you to agree to leave your job and go to a fortune-teller. I’ve been asking you for centuries, and every time I’ve gotten a no!”

“Don’t push it, Brahms. I won’t be going if you can’t convince the council to let me leave.”

“I’m not! And you’ll see. I’ll get the council to say yes. I’m a smooth talker,” he said as he ran his fingers through his long hair.

“Sure.”

“I am a smooth talker, and I’ve got luck on my side today. I smooth-talked you into going to a fortune teller, and, maybe if I’m lucky, I can smooth talk my way into getting lucky with my finance tonight,” He said with a proud grin on his face.

 

☾ ⋆*･ﾟ:⋆*･ﾟ:⠀ *⋆.*:･ﾟ .: ⋆*･ﾟ: .⋆

 

“I can’t believe you convinced the council to me having a day off,” I said as I packed a small bag to take with us on our trip.

“I can’t either. But it’s happening. You excited?” Brahms asked as he sat on the couch in my room and watched me pack.

“I’m not expecting much to come from it, so no. And, its only a day off, so not much relaxing will be done,” I said as I zipped up my bag.

“Well, better than nothing. I’ve been waiting for centuries for this to happen. Just thinking of you married and happy and starting your own little family of little monsters makes me want to puke,” he said sarcastically.

I threw the book at him, which he caught, and chuckled. “Thanks. I’m glad I have my friend's support.”

He stood up and fixed his jacket, “Anytime. Now, let's get this show on the road. We’ve got a plane to catch.”

A couple of hours later, Brahms and I landed in the New Orleans airport in the kingdom's private jet. We rarely used it, but it was always lovely when we did. Plus modern transportation makes trips two times faster than in the early 1900s. They were exceptionally fast if you took a plane. I liked flying on planes because it was like flying without actually trying.

It felt weird to be off, even if it was for a day. I haven’t taken a day off in years since kingly duties kept me busy most all day. The gossipers in the castle must be buzzing with excitement at my sudden day off. I’m sure someone on the council also leaked that I was traveling to find my soul mate, and so there would probably be a slew of rumors by the time I came back. 

Once Brahms and I had changed into civilian clothes and left the rest of our belongings on the plane, we headed for Madam Ismene’s shop. The streets weren’t crowded with people since it was mid-day, and most were working, but a few milled about on the streets. No one paid us any mind since most of them were already drunk or were shopping with little ones. 

Old beads covered the street drains, but most things around Bourbon street are covered with beads. The trees, powerlines, balconies, and shops all had beads hanging. It was mid-September, and it felt as if it was the middle of the Summer. It wasn’t necessarily hot, but the humidity made it more unbearable.

Brahms paused on the sidewalk to get his surroundings before taking a right down into an alleyway. People were sitting on metal steps talking and said hello as we passed. People were really friendly here, but also really loud.

“So, are we almost there?”

Brahms paused to look at his phone again before he clicked it off and shoved it in his pocket. “Yes, we just have to knock,” He said as he looked around for anyone watching us. 

I watched for any people watching us while Brahms inspected the brick wall to our left. He knocked on it three times, each on a different brick, and stood to wait for a few seconds. The bricks trembled as they moved aside to form a wooden doorway with the words The Blind Teller carved into it in a pretty cursive.

Brahms looked back at me, smiled, “Ready?”

“Sure. Ladies first,” I snarkily replied as I held open the door for him.

He dramatically bowed, “I’m honored, dipshit.”

When Brahms and I immediately, I noticed that no one was inside. It was very dim and had carpets of different shapes, sizes, and designs all over the floor. Potted plants were hanging from the wall whose vines hung throughout the room. There was a strong smell of incense coming from somewhere in the back.

 A bell had chimed when we entered, and soon a small lady in a colorful dress came from behind a curtain. She wore a black hijab and a bright smile as she welcomed us to Madame Ismene’s shop.

"Hello, my name is Siham. What can I do for you today?" She asked politely as she stood behind the front desk.

Brahms spoke up as I looked around the place, "Appointment for Draven with the Oracle."

I looked around the room as Brahms talked to the lady. The decorations were mostly plants, but a small waterfall sat on the front desk, which gave the place a more calming feeling. The seating was made of different chairs: bean bag chairs, wooden chairs, padded chairs, rocking chairs, and a bench, but it made the place feel unique and homely.

"Ah! Welcome King Draven, the Oracle is ready for you. Whenever you're ready, please step behind the curtain. Your friend can wait in the waiting room," She replied sweetly.

She turned back to Brahms, "Would you like a reading magazine or something while you wait?" Brahms said no, but talking with her instead. He is a very friendly person when he is not mad.

I breathed in and walked unsurely towards the curtains. They were on the right side of the front desk and, before I walked in, I noticed a sign that said to take off your shoes before you entered. I looked down at my shoes and sighed; I didn’t wear matching socks today. I took my shoes off and put them in the bin by the curtain. I cleared my throat, fixed my composure than walked behind the curtains.

The room was darker than the waiting room and was lit by unscented candles stationed around the room. The flickering of the candles created weird shadows, and the room was cooler. The room was covered in different colored carpets, but there were cushions everywhere and a woman sitting on one in the center.

"Welcome, King Draven. What brings you here?" The voice came from the woman sitting on the ground meditating.

"You're the oracle, shouldn't you know?" I responded curtly.

"Now, I may be an oracle, but I don't know all the answers in the universe," The oracle responded as she stood up and moved across the room to a table with a bunch of incense in jars. She looked at the names of jars, picked some up, and then put them back down until she found the one she was looking for.

She took some incense from the jar and lit it with a snap of her fingers. "Now, I ask again. Why are you here?" She walked around the room as she mumbling things under her breath.

I scrunched up my nose in disgust from the overwhelming smell of incense. "I need help finding my Queen."

"Queen? You mean your soul mate, your true love, correct?" She asked before she put out the incense and then sat it down in a small bowl. She motioned for me to sit, so I did. She had her entire face except her mouth covered to either protect her identity or because it was part of her religion. 

"Yes, I need your help as to where I can find her or who she is," I said as I observed her. She sat down and started setting out random items on the table: a big rock, a compass, and a crescent moon charm. I couldn’t see them that well, surprisingly, and they each had a weird look to them.

She smiled, "Your hands?"

I held out my hands, and she grabbed them with her cold hands. She closed her eyes and breathed in and out. She started asking me some basic questions about what I liked in a female. I told her I wanted them to be about medium height, race or culture doesn’t matter. I would love it if she had a wild personality and someone to keep me on my toes. I want someone who will stand by my side confidently. I want to support each other. I, above all, just wanted her to love me. She then asked for information about me. She asked about my age, where I was born, parents, and more before she finally asked me to look at the items she laid out in the beginning.

“What do you see?” She asked after she snapped his fingers. The candlelight grew brighter, and the objects became more visible. There was one I didn’t see until now that was situated by the woman’s hand. It was a peacock feather, small but vibrant and beautiful.

“I see a big rock, a compass, a crescent moon, and a peacock feather,” I said as I monitored the lady's movements.

The lady looked down at the peacock feather and picked it up. I could see her smile under the cloth she wore. “I see. Now, check again.”

I looked at the items again, and there was nothing. I looked at her with a wary eye. I would’ve noticed if she removed things from the table, so where did the items go? 

She laid the peacock feather down in front of me. “Those items were never truly there, only figments of what your soulmate symbolizes. Shall I tell you more?” I nodded, and she grabbed my hands again. It wasn’t in a clingy way, but in a grandmother grabbing her grandchild’s hand. It was comforting.

She chuckled, "Hope you don't mind a big age gap.”

"What do you mean?" I asked her as I straightened my back.

She cleared her throat, “The size of the rock means a big age gap or your partners' impact in your life. First, since you are almost 100 years old, that will give you a bigger age gap. You may not think it much, but your soul mate might have a hard time grasping the age difference. Second, if the rock is referring to the impact in your life, then it will be great.” The woman paused and took in a deep breath, “The compass. Think of it in your mind. What directions stood out to you?”

“North and East.”

“North. The North symbolizes home and wisdom. Your soul mate will bring you a different perspective and give you a home. East. East represents a new beginning and inspiration,” The lady paused while I thought.

My soul mate sounds perfect so far.

“The crescent moon symbolizes light, transformation, and will help lead to a personal revolution. Though be warned, your soul mate isn’t what you expect. In time she will become these things, but she is hurting, she needs time to heal, and needs above all your time, patience, and love.” I nodded as I waited for her to continue. She looked me deep in my eyes as she spoke, “The peacock feather symbolizes grace, awakening, royalty, self-expression, and confidence. The reason you saw this last was because of what will ultimately be your mate. It will take time, a lot of time. And you must be patient, helpful, and resourceful. Your first meeting will be interesting, and you won’t be able to keep yourself going back.

“What do you mean by interesting?”

“Let’s just say, Draven, that I wouldn’t wear my favorite suit. I wouldn’t want you getting it dirty,” She smiled and started to laugh. I wondered what exactly would happen to my suit if I wore it, but my thoughts were cut off by her laugh. “You’ll know it's her when you meet her, but, if you’re hesitant, she’ll be wearing a ‘fries before guys’ pin and eating Doritos.”

“That's-” I paused, “oddly specific.”

“Yes. Now, your time here is up. Goodbye. Have a great life! Until next time!” The woman said as she ushered me up and out of the room. The curtains closed behind Brahms and me, and the lady looked up and smiled at me.

“Soooo? How did it go?” Brahms said excitedly as I slipped on my shoes.


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Edited!

It is halfway through the first semester of my Junior year and I already want to drop out of high school and forever live in my parent's house. The work and test are relentless, the homework is nonstop and takes up to 4-5 hours to complete, and the teachers are all tired and annoyed of us already. Plus, my social life is practically nonexistent and my school life has gone down the drain. This past month and a half has been terrible, to say the least.

To start off, my mom sat me down on a rare Friday night that she had off and immediately set the tissue box in front of me. 

I looked at her curiously, “Mom, what’s wrong? Did something happen with dad?”

She sighed and rubbed her forehead, “No, dad is fine.” I let out a breath of relief. “ It’s about Moose.”

I gulped and I suddenly felt anxious butterflies in my stomach, ”W-what about Moose?” I swallowed and adjusted myself on my seat.

“Well, I brought him back to the vet on Monday to see if all the cancer was gone and it appears that it has come back,” Mom said with a strained voice. I could tell she was trying not to cry.

“They can remove it, right?” I asked her as my hands started to sweat. I nervously fidgeted with a string on my sweatshirt as she sighed. I bit my lip as I tried not to cry.

“They said they could, but he’d be without a paw. We can’t remove his paw because he is too old and heavy to walk on three legs. Plus, last time they put him asleep to do surgery, he was throwing up for weeks after. We can’t put him through that again. They said we could try chemotherapy, but if he can barely walk and gets sick a lot after any type of surgery than that's not good either,” My mom took a tissue and blew her nose.

My eyes started to tear up and I had to look away. My mom doesn’t cry. She didn’t cry when my dad was almost killed on the job. She didn’t cry when I sobbed that I wanted my dad home for Christmas. Now she cried.

I sniffed and stood up. “He’ll get through this, right?”

My mom hesitated, “I hope so.”

“Is there any other thing they can try?” I asked her as tears rolled down my face. My mom grabbed my hand gently and pulled me towards her. Her arms gently surrounded me and I grasped onto her like a little kid. At that moment I wished I could just go back in time to when things were simple and not complicated. Where I didn’t have to worry about my family dying.

“I don’t think so. We’ll just have to give him a great last few months.” 

I grabbed some tissue from the tissue box before I walked away. I held myself together until I passed by Moose who lay happily on his bed as he chewed on a toy. He looked up at me with his beautiful, happy eyes and then went back to chewing his toy. 

I bit my lip and raced upstairs and quietly shut my door. Silent tears rolled down my face as I crawled into bed and hugged my sloth plushie.

Moose will live. Moose has always been there. Moose will be there. Moose will see me graduate. Moose will always be there. “Dear God, please…” I sobbed into my pillow. “Please. Please. Please…”

 

☾ ⋆*･ﾟ:⋆*･ﾟ:⠀ *⋆.*:･ﾟ .: ⋆*･ﾟ: .⋆

 

 

For the next couple of weeks after our talk, I walked Moose a little more. I noticed it was becoming harder for him to walk the normal route we took around the neighborhood, so I just shortened it. Mom said his arthritis was getting worse, so it was probably that. I mean, he looked healthy and he was always wagging his tail and wanting to play. He was the same as he always is and always was. The doctors are wrong, Moose is stronger than cancer. But, this definitely made my personal life worse. My family was possibly dying and I couldn’t do anything to stop it.

School life wasn’t getting any better either. Tina would be absent for two weeks because she has strep (again) and will have to get her tonsils removed. So, that practically means I’m alone for two weeks. Eden and Karen don’t talk to me unless they need something, like all of my classmates. Tina is the superglue that holds this fragile friend group together.

In fact, since Tina has been gone the divide is very apparent. In fact, I overheard Eden and Karen talking about me in the bathroom before school.

I needed to go to the bathroom because I thought I had just started my period, even though I would have been 2 days early. The thing about the upper school bathroom is that there are lots of cubby holes for the girl to put their bags in and it creates a sort of first room before you walk into the actual bathroom part. So, when I walked into the cubby part of the bathroom I heard Karen and Eden’s voices and stopped to listen, especially since they were talking about me.

“I’m so tired of Eloise talking to you. She knows what she did to us, so why does she even pretend anymore?” Eden said as she looked in her purse for a tampon.

“Yeah,” Karen said from the other side of the stall.

“Plus, we know who she truly is. A lonely, selfish bitch,” Eden said as she handed Karen the tampon. My stomach dropped and I put my hand over my mouth. The door behind me opened and a group of girls walked around me and further into the bathroom.

“Exactly.”

“And now she’s all lonely with no friends. It clearly shows too. With Tina not here, Eloise is all alone and has no friends. As it should be. Every time I see her face I just want to scream!

“Calm down. At least we only have a year and a half left here. Then we can just say ‘fuck it’ and forget this place!” said Karen as she washed her hands.

I backed out the bathroom and returned to my normal spot on the floor. No one sat near me unless Tina was here. Everyone sat in big groups around me, but I was utterly secluded. I was alone. I’m the odd one out here. I don’t talk about boys all the time, or the latest drama between friend groups. I don’t care about who slept with who or whose pregnant. I don’t go shopping every weekend and put on makeup every day and complain how ‘I wanna break up with my boyfriend, but, like, he wanted me to give him a b.j over the weekend so I did.’ I heard that complaint by a Sophomore who was walking down the hall and who thought no one could hear her.  I’m different here. I don’t fit in and I’m not needed. Maybe it's for the best being alone because that way no one can turn their back on you. 

But, I always stop myself from shutting myself down. Why? I don’t really know, but I know I love to help people even if they screw me over in the end. It’s one thing about me that hasn’t changed throughout my years of change, trauma, and growing up. I just want high school to be over.

“Hey Eloise!” said a voice who stood in front of me. I took out my earbuds and looked up from where I was seated to see Elaine and Dallas smiling at me. 

I sniffed and tried to clear my eyes. I put a smile on my face, “Hey! What’s up?”

“Well, I and Elaine were wondering if you had finished the study guide for English?” asked Dallas with a smile on her face. She smelled like spray tan - must mean that a dance is coming up.

_ Of course _ . I nodded and created a big, fake smile, “Yep! Quizlet already made. You’ll just have to look up my username to find it.”

“Omg!” Elaine exclaimed as she clapped her hands together in excitement. “You’re a lifesaver!”

Dallas sighed happily, “You’re amazing. I don’t know how you do it.” 

I smiled at them and just shrugged. Sometimes these girls are so blind and deaf that they forget that the teacher has shown us the study guide, posted it online and has even given us a copy. Its called I-use-the-damn-study-guide-and-put-homework-as-a-priority-instead-of-a-party. Though, not like I’ve ever been invited to party so I wouldn’t know if they are fun.

“You’re the best El_oiseBL,” They both said as they walked away happily. I shook my head as they walked away. At least I know I’m needed to keep  _ other _ peoples grade’s up.

I sighed, they memorized my username. I’m surprised. Also, I’m surprised no one has asked me what the last two letters meant. It means Book Lover, but it’s been mistaken for  _ other _ things before. The username El_oiseBookLover was already taken, so I chose the next best thing.

 

 

☾ ⋆*･ﾟ:⋆*･ﾟ:⠀ *⋆.*:･ﾟ .: ⋆*･ﾟ: .⋆

 

It's an irritating day when you’re constantly reminded that your only friends are Tina, your mom, your dog, and a plushie sloth named Fredrick. It is about to be Thanksgiving and all the girls keep talking about are their Friendsgiving plans. Add that to a list of things I’ve never been to. I’ve never been invited to a real party, Friendsgiving dinner, a football game (because why go alone), or even to go out to eat with people after school. I’ve done it a couple of times with Tina, but that was Freshman year.

I’m also irritated because my history teacher decided that we should have a Unit 5 test, and Map Test and a project due the week before Thanksgiving break. She does know I have other classes, right? Not only that but we also have to welcome that sponsor that was supposed to come 2 months ago but had to cancel for some unknown reason. But, because of that guy the school wants to showcase some of our “student talents” so that means the choir I’m in has to practice nonstop during Activity period just to be ready for this sudden performance. (My school just happens to be fantastic at communication. We were told we would have to perform a song or two 4 days before he actually came! Such great communication!)

Another thing to make my Monday even more irritating is that about 15 people in my grade have asked me if I’ve made a Quizlet for the History test. I’m happy that they use my Quizlets, but they aren’t even pretending that they care about me as a human being. I’m seriously thinking of making my Quizlets private just to majorly piss some people off. Plus, they always act fake towards me when they need something, but when I help or don’t help, they never talk to me again unless they need something. It makes me so drained at the end of the day when I have to act fake and be fake and pretend all the time. I hate it! But, I help them because that means people talk to me. For at least a minute people in my grade talk to me and I’m noticed. It’s the small things.

The only place I can find some sanctuary at this school full of spray tans, fake ass girls, cliquey administrative, and rude ass people is in the run-down music room with Mr. Sansder. The Music room in tucked away in a little corner of the school that no one really uses. The room’s ceiling is full of holes from countless repairs, missing ceiling tiles, dried up water stains, and little paper airplanes with people’s names written on them. Mr. Sansder always has a bowl of candy sitting on the old, and seriously in need of repair piano. We have fold-out chairs as our seats and we a couple old roller chairs which people always run to try and sit on. In a corner sat a mass of old metal music stands and some tables that no one has touched in a while. 

The Music room is my favorite place in this school because of how secluded it is. People only go there to sing and then they leave it alone. It’s a place that people come in here to cry to Mr. Sansder about their problems and they get a piece of candy and then they can go throughout their day. Mr. Sansder is a great teacher who lets us choose pieces we want to sing and we can all have fun with. I’m able to sing out my emotions instead of crying. It’s my sanctuary and I’m happy that my amazing, very gay, teacher is able to provide that space for his students.

Right now, the choir is practicing the songs Stand By You and Never Enough for our short performance on Friday. I have a history test to cram for, but honestly, I’m so tired and don’t care if I fail it. I’m at the ‘I don’t give a fuck’ stage right now and I would rather be at home but I have to be here at this dreadful school. But, it does help that all this week we will be singing in our free time, so I am excited about that!

“Okay! Quiet down, everybody! Lets split into our groups. Mezzos over there, Altos and Sopranos beside me,” Mr. Sansder said as he walked through the door with a huge plastic container full of green tea. The girls grabbed a handful of candy before they got into their spots and grabbed the sheet music. 

“We will start first with Never Enough. I want my Mezzos to be loud!” Mr. Sansder said as he set down his jug of green tea on his desk. He quickly sat on the piano bench and hit some keys. “Let us begin, my students!”

“Mr. Sansder! How are you and your boyfriend?” a girl yelled from one of the roller chairs. She spun around in it as her friend pushed her around the room.

“Good. Great. Wonderful. Now, how much time do we have?” Mr. Sansder said as he checked his wrist, but there was no watch. “Damn it, forgot my watch.”

A girl who was standing on a chair pulled out her phone and yelled, “30 minutes!” The girl then returned to throwing her badly folded paper airplane into the ceiling.

“Don’t fall! I won’t catch you if you do!” Mr. Sansder said as he handed people more sheet music.

  
  
  


☾ ⋆*･ﾟ:⋆*･ﾟ:⠀ *⋆.*:･ﾟ .: ⋆*･ﾟ: .⋆

 

It was finally Friday and the day the sponsor was supposed to come. The people in the administrative office were running around ordering students to do things while teachers sat annoyed that their classes were interrupted. The lady who is planning this whole event is very annoying, that’s me being polite, and bosses everyone around regardless of who they are. The students call her a bitch, which should be her name, but sadly her name was Madison Ann Hope Smith Johnson. Yes, her middle name was Ann Hope Smith. 

Mrs. Bitch decided that today she was going to argue and order around the juniors! Every time I see that woman I want to blindfold myself and go deaf. She gathered as many of us as she could before school started and made us finish decorating the theatre and organize pamphlets. Why do we need over 300 pamphlets when only one person is coming to visit? I have no idea, but Mrs. Bitch thought it was a great idea if everyone received one. We ‘want everyone to  _ feel _ included’. She’d like us to  _ feel _ that we are included, not actually  _ be _ included. Typical.

 

It was lunchtime, finally, and afterward, the choir would do a warmup for 5 minutes before we performed. Mr. Sansder is always a perfectionist. He was even so cramped for time to practice that after our first practice on Monday, he asked 12 of us to stay after and told us that we were going to be the only ones singing Never Enough because teaching a whole choir to harmonize that song perfectly in 4 days was not enough time. So, I get to be apart of Mr. Sansder’s special choir! How exciting! First thing I’ve actually looked forward to this school year besides the weekend!

I quickly bought my food from the lunch line and headed outside to sit with my “friends.” Sadly, Tina was still out due to her surgery because she couldn’t swallow anything ruffer than crewed up cracker bits. 

Normally we all sat on a metal picnic table outside the cafeteria, but only when it was warm and had nice weather. It was quieter than sitting inside with all the noise, plus we were able to get some sun. I usually sat next to Tina and across from us sat Eden and Karen. Even when we sat down to eat our table was clearly divided.

Once I opened the doors to outside, the smell of nature and the sound of bubbling conversations hit me. I walked towards the table in the corner of the small patio with purpose because I had to tell them about what Ms. Parker said about Emma.

I sat my lunch on the table and sat down on my side while Karen and Eden were talking about today's Honors Algebra 2 class. "And then she said, 'I don't care that there is a Khalid concert this weekend, you will still do your work.' And I had to put my hand over my mouth to stop laughing!" Karen said as she tried not to laugh.

"Karen! I was just about to tell her that!" I yelled at her playfully. They don’t know I overheard their conversation, so, for now, I will just pretend we are friends just like they do.

"Sorry! I just couldn't keep it in. I had to spread that  _ beautiful _ moment Ms. Parker yelled at that bitch! It made my entire day! Omg and then how Emma stormed out the classroom!  _ Priceless!” _ said Karen happily.

We all laughed, but it quickly died away into an awkward silence. Karen turned her body away from me and started whispering to Eden. As they had their private conversation I silently ate. It didn’t bother me that they weren’t talking to me. In fact, I’d gotten used to people not talking to me when I was in 7th grade and was officially excluded by my classmates.

I opened my bag of chips and popped some delicious BBQ chips into my mouth. Eden turned to me and pointed at my chips, "BBQ chips again?" She looked back at Karen and sneered, clearly mocking me.

“You’re going to get fat if you keep eating those,” said Karen as she chewed on her celery sticks.  _ Fuck you and your celery sticks, Karen _ .

I swallowed my chips and smiled a big and obviously fake smile, "Of course!" I paused and pretended to look at her closely, “Oh, you’ve got something right here.” I pointed vaguely at her face. “You too, Karen.”

“What? Where?” Eden and Karen said as they tried to feel around their faces. 

“Oh, wait.” I paused as I smiled, “That’s just your face.” I smirked as I stood up with my tray. They opened their mouths to retaliate but were in too much of a  shock to say anything. “You might want to close your mouth. You look ridiculous.” I said as I walked away. I triumphantly threw my things into the trash and walked onwards towards the music room. 

"Well, good luck gaining all that weigh bitch..." Karen whispered to Eden as she angrily took a sip of her drink.

On the way to the music room, I decided that I deserved another bag of BBQ chips for my amazing comeback. A group of girls stopped me after I bought my second bag of BBQ chips.

"How long is this assembly going to be?" One of them asked me.

"It's going to be kinda long considering we have that guy coming," I said as the group of girls listened to what I was saying.

“He’s a sponsor, right?” Dallas asked me. 

I nodded and rolled my eyes, “It’s ridiculous that they want to show off. We all know it's just for show anyway.” A chorus of responses followed, some including: ‘damn straight,’ ‘fuck this shit,’ and ‘I have better things to do.’

“Wait, aren’t you in the choir?” Dallas asked me.

“Um, yeah. In fact, I have to go now in order to not be late,” I said as I walked some steps backward.

“Oh. Good luck! You’ll do great!” Dallas said as she waved goodbye.

"Yo! Ladies! Lunch is overtime, time to clean up. Don't forget your lunchroom duties if you have them!" A teacher yelled from the middle of the cafeteria. I groaned, I forgot I had lunchroom duty. As I went to go get the washrag I saw another choir member.

"Hey! Rosalie! Can you tell Mr. Sansder I’ll be late?" I asked her. 

She looked around before she found me and smiled, “Of course! I'll let him know you're cleaning the lunch tables and will be there soon." She scurried off towards the trash bin and then off towards the music room.

After I was done cleaning the tables inside with 3 other girls it took around 5  minutes.  _ Crap _ . I quickly rushed to the music room. I pulled out my unfinished bag of BBQ chips out of my pocket and ate them as I quickly walked down the hallway. I had just finished the bag and was about to lick the BBQ remnants off my fingers when I turned a corner and walked straight into a hard, large chest.

A weird noise of surprise came out of my mouth as I collided with the large chest and fell backward. I closed my eyes in anticipation of hitting the ground, but hands quickly wrapped around my shoulder and side. I opened my eyes and steadied myself against the wall. The empty bag of BBQ chips was on the ground and I immediately picked it up. I looked up but didn’t see a face until what it felt like forever. It was a very handsome face. Like the ones that you’d find doing a Hallmark channel - it is the channel for beautiful people.

I immediately backed up, BBQ chip bag in hand, and apologized. I blushed as I realized I had left BBQ crumbs on this man's very nice and expensive-looking suit. I wanted to clean the crumbs off, but that would be extremely rude.

I gasped and apologized again, "I'm so sorry!" I put my hands up to my mouth in shock. The man looked astonished for a second, then completely dumbfounded. I stuffed my empty BBQ bag into my pocket and rubbed the BBQ residue onto my dark skirt. “I’m sorry! I can’t believe I got crumbs on your suit!”

The man looked down at his suit and noticed, for the first time, the crumbs of BBQ chips. He dusted the crumbs off his suit and looked me up and down. He was a very tall man, around 6'2 (190 cm). He had striking green eyes and a face crafted by the gods themselves. His hair looked smooth and shiny under the light and was a dark chocolate brown color. He had a nice tan that complimented his suit and wore pristine clothes. I blushed at how immaculate he looked and how I messed up his suit. He looked so dreamy and young. His looks reminded me of the early 1900s. Like the crisp suits that the handsome men always wore, especially the mafia.

Compared to my 5’2 self (157.48 cm), he clearly towered over me. He smiled and I could feel my cheeks get even redder. “It’s fine. I wasn’t watching where I was going either.”  _ Oh, sweet baby Jesus _ . His voice was so deep and he even had a little stubble on his face and I really wanted to touch it for some reason.

I nervously stood there as I awkwardly apologized again, “I wasn’t watching either, but still. I just dirtied your suit.”

“Don’t worry, this can be washed. But, you hurting yourself if you fell cannot be easily fixed,” He said smoothly as he looked down at me. 

I gulped and took a mental second to collect myself, “Thank you, sir. I appreciate your help.” 

The man’s mouth curled up into a smile that exposed his semi-white teeth. His teeth weren’t perfectly straight, but it just added to the charm. “Call me, Draven.” He looked around and then back at me, “Can you show me where the administrative office is? I seem to have gotten lost.”

“Oh! You must be the sp-” I caught myself. “You’re the person coming to visit the school today, aren’t you?”

“Yes. I’m glad someone has finally asked. All everyone has been doing is just staring at me. Not much help around here, is there?”

I laughed nervously, “Yeah. They can be pretty blind….So, I can show you the way. If you’d like.”

I was about to start showing him when  I heard the voice of Dr. Wombug from behind him. I peeked around him and saw that it was Dr. Wombug followed by “the chosen girls” who were supposed to show our guest around and just so happened to be her favorite students.

“I can’t find him! Mrs. Darson said he just walked off!” She scoffed as she rounded the corner, but her scowl quickly transformed into a smile as soon as she saw Draven.

“Mr. Goodwin!” Dr. Wombug said happily with a big smile plastered on her face. Her little minions also wore the same fake smiles.  _ Ugh, I wanna throw up. _

“Draven,” he corrected her politely.

“Draven, There you are! Is everything alright?" She looked down at my lanyard for my name, "Hello Eloise, how are you?"

I smiled a big, fake smile, "Good, how are you Dr. Wombug?"

"Fantastic.” She quickly ignored me and moved onto the  _ honored _ guest, “ Now, Draven what are you doing over here? You’ve just gone off and wandered by yourself!" Dr. Wombug said with a slight tone of annoyance. She chuckled, “Have fun exploring our fun, little campus?”  I internally rolled my eyes. She is so annoying and fake!

"I was just talking to Eloise here about the school. If you don't mind, I'd like her to show me around. Is that okay?" Draven asked Dr. Wombug.

Dr. Wombug's eye twitched in annoyance but she smiled, "Of course! Maybe some of my other students could show you around as well?”

“I’d love to tour with them later, but I need to get to the administrative office and Eloise already graciously offered to show me. I’ll find you later and would love to see the campus with you all. Thank you Dr. Wombug.” Draven said calmly as he very politely dismissed her.

_ DAAAAAAAMMMMMMNNNN! He actually dismissed her! Oh. My. God. _

She turned to look at me and I straightened my back. "Make sure to come back in 10 minutes so we can start assembly," Dr. Wombug said before she walked off with her little posse of minions.

I loosened my shoulders and then looked up at Draven, "Would you like to continue?" I put a gentle smile on my face and waited for his reply. My neck was going to hurt if I kept having to look up at him like this.

"Will it take us long to get to the Administration building?”

“Um, no. Maybe 2 minutes max?” I said trying to estimate in my mind.

“Then, show me around this building a little before I go. I’d love to ask you about your school,” Draven said as he adjusted his suit and smiled.

I shivered and got goosebumps, "Okay, well this way then." 

The first place I lead him was the cafeteria which was filled with little boys who loudly and messily ate lunch. When we walked into the cafeteria some stopped and stared, but most kept eating and throwing around their food. A group of little boys ran in front of us as they all raced for the microwaves.

“This is our cafeteria. It has 3 microwaves, but they honestly aren’t in the best shape.” I gestured to one close to us which had dried food on top of it and the handle was broken. The lunches here are good most days. Though, seafood day is always when the cafeteria food is the most suspicious.” I laughed because it was true. I didn’t trust cafeteria seafood, plus it smelled terrible.

“Has it been renovated recently?” Draven asked as he stepped over a split cup of apple sauce.

“I don’t know. I’ve been here since the 6th grade so not for at least 5 years.” A little boy was running after his friends when he tripped in front of us. He got up and looked down at his scraped knees before he started to sniffle. “Hold on one second,” I said as I went to an empty table and grabbed some napkins from the center. I went over to the boy and knelt down beside him.

“You took a hard fall. Here, use this to cover your bleeding knee until you can get to the nurse. I pulled a piece of candy out of my pocket that I was going to save for my last class. 

The boy sniffled and placed the napkin over his bleeding knee and then took the piece of candy, “Thank you.” His friends came back and helped him up and brought him to the teacher.

“Sorry about that,” I said as I shoved my hands into my pockets.

“It’s quite alright,” He said before we walked on. I showed him the food that was being served and he smiled at all the lunch ladies and men. 

“Have you liked it here. And, be honest.” He asked me as we walked around and looked at the lunch options.

I paused and debated on whether or not to tell him the truth. He looked down at me and waited for my answer, “Well, it has been good overall. No school is perfect though, and this one certainly has its flaws. It’s giving me a good education and the teachers are nice.”

“Socially, how it?” I opened my mouth to respond but didn’t. I didn’t have good opinions about the social scene here. “I see. I’m sorry about that.” He opened the door for me and I thanked him. 

We now were walking into the old gym. The old gym is where all the banners and awards were displayed. The ceiling was covered in what looked like popcorn and exposed all the air ducts and electricity. I know for a fact that tons of balls, frisbees, and other objects were stuck up there.

“Do you think this school is good for new students? Unique students specifically.” Draven asked as we walked around the gym and inspected all our old sports awards. 

“It depends on if you fit in. They say everyone is welcome, but the girls decide if you fit in or not. It is just how it is here.” I said as we stared at a picture of the school taken back in 1974.

“That’s disappointing and sad. These girls must not see how awesome and kind you are. But, thank you for being honest. I really appreciate it.” Draven said as he patted my shoulder.

“You know, because you're so tall it hurts my neck having to keep looking up at you,” I said with a playful tone.

Draven laughed, “You’re funny Eloise.”

“At least you seem to think so.” I looked up at him and for  _ completely innocent _ reasons wanted to know how old he was. I wanted to see if, maybe once I graduated, I had a chance.

“How old are you?” I asked him as we exited out of the gym. He gave me a look of amusement and smiled. I blushed and quickly clarified, “You just seem too young to be an investor of a school.”

“Well, I’m in the place of my father who normally does these things. But, to answer your question, I am 22. How old are you?”

“I’m 17. About to turn 18 in March. We walked down the hallway a little with neither of us saying anything. “You know, your clothes remind me of those movies that are set in the 1920s-30s and are about dangerous mafia members and handsome rich guys.”

He laughed, “That’s the first time I’ve heard that. Is that good?”

“Yes. I like men in suits. I find that it looks good on almost any man, but your suit fits you very well.”

He winked at me and said with a northern accent, “Thanks doll.”

I laughed, “That was good!”

When we went into the hallway near the music room I saw Rosalie running down the hallway towards us. "Eloise! Where were you?" She yelled as she stopped in front of me. As she caught her breath she looked at the hot man in the suit beside me. “I’ve been looking everywhere for you!” She said in between her gulping for breath.

"I was showing Mr. Goodwin around," I said as I gestured to him.

She smiled at him then stuck her hand out, "My name is Rosalie. Nice to meet you and welcome to our school." She shook his hand and then looked back at me, "We have to go. It's almost time for us to perform and you missed the warm-up."

I looked at Mr. Goodwin and then back at Rosalie, "You'll have to excuse me Mr. Goodwin, but I have to go. If you walk straight down the hallway and then take a right at the first door you see you'll make it to where the administrative office is. I apologize for leaving so soon. Thank you for letting me show you around. I had a lot of fun." I said as Rosalie grabbed my sleeve.

"What is your email in case I need to contact you for information?"

"Do you have a pen and a piece of paper?" I asked him.

He took out a pin from him pock and then a small notepad from another pocket. Wow, he is really prepared.  _ Just my type! _ He handed the pen and notepad to me and I wrote down my name, school email, and my number just in case.

I handed the pen and pad back and, as I did, our fingers touched. They remained touching a few seconds longer than normal before he took the pen and pad back. “I left my number in case you need it and can’t contact me! Goodbye!” I said as I ran down the hallway with Rosalie.

“Damn girl. He cute.” Rosalie smirked at me.

I rolled my eyes, “Shut up! He’s not just cute! He’s smoking hot!”

☾ ⋆*･ﾟ:⋆*･ﾟ:⠀ *⋆.*:･ﾟ .: ⋆*･ﾟ: .⋆

The choir waited behind the stage in the theatre as we waited for assembly to start. You could hear the overpowering chatter of the entire upper school from the backstage and it made it hard to hear the people beside me speaking.

"Who was that hottie you were showing around?" One of the girls asked beside me.

"He was the businessman we got an email about yesterday. His name is Draven." I said loudly so she could hear me.

"Omg, he is so hot! You're so lucky! And he even wanted your email!" Rosalie squealed excitedly and shook me a little.

"I know! I was so nervous! I said as I blushed.

"Please stand for the prayer and pledge," The SGA president said.

After the prayer and pledge the student sat back down and the SGA president introduced the choir. The curtains opened and the spotlight blinded my eyes. I was already sweating, but through my limited view, I could just see the front seats. Seated in the front was Draven. I felt butterflies in my stomach. 

"And now our upper school choir will sing 'Stand By You' and 'Never Enough'," The SGA president said from the podium.

Mr. Sandser gave us our cue and we started singing. As we sang I focused on Mr. Sansder and making sure I stayed in pitch. Rosalie sang beside me strongly and full of power, she really is a talented singer. I looked out into the crowd and saw Draven standing up and clapping loudly. I watched as he refused a bottle of water from Dr. Wombug who angrily walked away and tried not to laugh. Instead, I smiled and watched as she sulked away.

Once the audience finished clapping most of the altos, mezzos, and sopranos left while a select few of us stayed on stage to sing our second song, "Never Enough." Rosalie and I stood by the end of the piano with the rest of mezzos while the rest was near Mr. Sansder. This is my favorite song because it's harmonized beautifully and really fun. Mr. Sansder started playing and we all started singing. Each of us has sort of us solo with one other person. I have a solo with this girl named Adelaide who is a senior and is also a mezzo. We go second in the order of solos and then we do background for the rest of the song.

For some reason, I can't help but look out into the crowd and look for Draven again. When I look at where he was I can't find him and continue to look as we sing. Right before Adelaide and I's solo I find him in a seat towards the back of the theatre, but close enough to where I could still tell it was him. He could barely fit in the seat.

When it was Adelaide and I's turn we harmonized with each other perfectly and put all our heart and soul into it. Adelaide is such a good person when you get to know her and she is a good singer too. I'm glad I was paired with her. We sang our short solo beautifully and powerfully then sang background while others had their solos. The whole time I watched Draven who watched us with a straight face. 

When we finished the entire upper school stood up in applause.  I hugged Adelaide who stood beside me in shock and awe of our performance. I looked at Mr. Sansder and he looked at me and gave me a thumbs up and a bright smile.

"He's looking at you!" Rosalie whispered in my ear.

I blushed and smiled and laughed as the curtains closed in front of us. I could’ve sworn Draven watched me intently, but I would never know. The lights cut out of view and so did the audience, it was like blinds that cut off your view of the beautiful night sky. The thing about blinds is that I find them annoying; they always ruin my happiest moments.


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is not yet edited, but I'm going on a hiatus for a while because I found out today that my amazing mother has Lupis. For those who don't know what Lupis is, it is not curable and is an autoimmune disease. Even the smallest cold can put my mother at risk and put her in the hospital. This comes as a shock considering it has been less than a year since my dog died and now my mother is sick. Please understand and I apologize. It's going to be a rough time.
> 
> Edit - Mom is better. I am doing better. THERE ARE 2 PARTS. Part 2 of 2 is uploaded!

The past week has been super busy with an endless amount of tests, quizzes, projects, and homework. It’s only the second quarter, but I feel hopeless. Like there isn’t a light at the end of the tunnel. Mom keeps saying that life is full of ups and downs and that this is just the down before the up. I feel that things will be getting worse. It’s hard to say how I know, but I’ve had this gut feeling for a while. Another thing mom says is to always trust your gut.

Though it hasn’t all been bad, my grades are excellent! I’ve been working myself to death studying, doing homework, preparing for exams, and studying more. It helps keeps my mind busy and away from other things, for example, the possible impending doom of my childhood pet and that my personal life is falling apart. But, on a happier note, the bitches at school leave me alone most of the time. They only bother me when they need something. I’m just glad at least someone is talking to me, even if it is only to use me. It makes me feel like I belong, even though I know I don’t.

The thing that sets me apart is that I don’t constantly talk about boys, or who slept with who, or gossip about people, or shop for dresses and shoes during History class - though I don’t blame them entirely for the last one. The girls are all the same, they all act the same, do the same, and the ones that do differ from the rest are either teacher favorites and are praised for their uniqueness or shunned. I happen to be in the shunned category, sadly.

I don’t mind helping people, in fact, I love to help people. I’m sad that they use me, but it makes me happy that I can help people. It’s something I’ve always enjoyed. Giving and helping people is both my virtue and my vice. I give and help so much that I tend to give away parts of myself in the process and tend to be left with a broken shell. I swore to be stricter with myself once I transferred schools in the 6th grade and I have, but I do tend to go overboard trying to help others. Trying to mend a broken soul is hard, but helping others is something I wish someone would have done for me during my time of need. I’m healing myself, but I just seem to be stuck. I don’t know how I’m stuck, or why, but I just know that I’m stuck. I’m trying to help myself heal, but the only thing that seems to work is when I write.

Currently, I’m a fanfiction writer with over 1000 subscribers, as of last week. I’ve been writing fanfiction for over 3 years and have written a two-book series - one finished and one almost finished. I am both proud and embarrassed about my work. I wrote the first one during the lowest point in my life and it’s full of nothing but unnecessary sex, drama, and terrible writing. I started the second one a year after the last one and only started it to make things right for the characters. It will only be about 8 chapters long, but people love it, and I’m almost finished. I won’t be writing a third because I’ve left the fandom, but I receive messages, comments, and likes every day from my stories.

Writing has always helped me work through my problems and hopefully will continue to help. My next book is one based on two characters I’ve created, Nora and Jonathan Williams, who are brother and sister. I won’t go into too many details considering I’m still planning out things, but I have great plans for these characters like larger than life adventures, rich romance, and healing. I hope to experience these one day, but first I have to survive high school.

☾ ⋆*･ﾟ:⋆*･ﾟ:⠀ *⋆.*:･ﾟ .: ⋆*･ﾟ: .⋆

My phone buzzed from beside me while I was reading, but it was probably an email from some person trying to scam me out of my money so I ignored it. But, then my phone started ringing, which is not something that happens often so I finally decided to check. It was an unknown number so I just rolled my eyes and let it go to voicemail. Buzzes on my phone always get my hopes up, but in reality, it's someone from New Mexico saying that I have a warrant out for my arrest. Bitch, I don’t even leave my house, so do you think I’d have gone to New Mexico.

My phone annoyingly buzzed again and I angrily picked it up to see that I had gotten a voicemail. I opened my phone and pressed the speaker button on the voicemail. I was, needless to say, shocked to hear the voice of Draven coming from my phone.

“Hello Eloise, this is Draven Goodwin. You gave me your phone number to contact you if I had any questions about your school, but I wanted to ask if you would be willing to meet my cousin. She’s around your age and is looking to possibly come to your school. Is it alright if we meet up sometime during or after your break? Get back to me when you can.”

“Holy shit,” I said out loud. Draven, the hot guy who will torment me for months in my dreams with his good looks, called me! “Fuck, do I call back now? Do I call in a few minutes? If I call back now will it seem like I was too anxious? But, if I wait will it seem rude?” I looked at my phone in desperation for an answer and received nothing. I groaned and flopped back onto my bed. Why am I always this awkward with men?

A couple of minutes later I stood staring at my phone as I contemplated whether to call or not and, if I did, what I would say. I started to pace as I acted out our potential conversation.  
“Hey! You wanted to meet up? No that’s too forward. Hello Draven, It’s Eloise. We met at my school if you remem- no that’s too long and if he didn’t remember me he wouldn’t call me. You know what, I’ll just wing it. Shouldn’t be too hard.” I said to myself as I picked up my phone and mentally prepared myself. I clicked on the number and the phone started to ring. I started pacing as I waited anxiously for him to pick up the phone.

“Hello?” said a deep voice. I stopped pacing and smiled. He actually picked up!

“Hi, Draven it’s Eloise. I’m calling you back to talk about wanting to meet up over my break,” I said as I nervously fidgeted.

“Eloise! Thank you for calling me back so soon.” Draven said excitedly.

“Oh, it’s no problem! So, what was it you were wanting to meet up about?” I asked as I paced around my room again.

“I wanted to ask if it was okay for us to meet up, maybe for lunch or something. I want you to meet my cousin, Anna, and tell her about your school. We’re looking into possible schools for her, and I knew I had to call you up for your opinion. Plus, I have some other questions about your school that I didn’t get to ask you. I’d prefer a more unbiased opinion regarding your school, and you’ve given me just that the last time we met.” He said happily. Though, I could tell he was irritated that people at my school were lying to him, didn’t surprise me considering that’s all they know how to do.

I smiled, “Thank you, that means a lot. And, I’d love to talk to you and Anna! It would be a nice outing during my Thanksgiving break. Where would you like to meet up?” I asked as I walked downstairs to my mom’s calendar. My mom’s calendar was the thing that kept our household running. If we had somewhere to go or an appointment, it went on the calendar or else it was nonexistent.

“Well, I don’t know the area very much, so could you recommend a place to eat? We aren’t picky eaters, so choose whatever.”

“Well, I’m glad you let me choose. I know some good spots to eat, and, since I am a picky eater, they are picky eater approved.” I laughed a little and I heard him chuckle a small bit. “I’ve been craving some Meditteranean food at a local restaurant called Casbah. It’s a great place, has great service, and my mom and I eat there at least once a week.”  
“Well, we will have to go there then. Does Monday at one o’clock work?”

I looked at my mom’s calendar and saw nothing planned for that day, “Monday at one works perfectly.” I wrote my plans on her calendar as we continued talking.

“Do you want me to pick you up?”

“No, I wouldn’t want to bother you. We can meet up there.” I smiled at the one event planned for that week. I feel accomplished.

“Oh, and don’t worry about paying, since I asked you to come out during your break I’ll pay.”

“You don’t have too!”

“I insist. You’ve been so kind to me, even though I’m a stranger.” I could tell he was smiling. His voice reeked excitement.

“I’m just glad I can help! And, you seem to be trustworthy.” I said as I headed back upstairs.

“Seem trustworthy? Well, that just means we have to talk more.”

I smiled and did a silent celebratory dance, “I look forward to it. I’ll see you Monday.”

“See you Monday, Eloise. It’s been wonderful to talk to you.” He hung up the phone and I smiled in pride.

I mimicked him, ‘“It’s been wonderful talking to you.”’ I laughed and flopped onto my bed in excitement. I did it!

☾ ⋆*･ﾟ:⋆*･ﾟ:⠀ *⋆.*:･ﾟ .: ⋆*･ﾟ: .⋆

Monday rolled around quicker than I thought. I still wasn’t mentally prepared for today, but I was definitely excited. I woke up around 10, which is early for me considering I normally wake up around noon, and started to prepare myself. I took a shower, put a little makeup on, and picked out a decent outfit. I wasn’t the best at fashion, so I picked some jeans and a t-shirt with the words “I need my space Nasa” on it. I looked in the mirror and smiled at myself. I wasn’t the skinniest person, so, for once, I actually felt confident in my looks.

I had told my mom earlier in the week what I was doing, and she was mad at first that I was meeting a stranger. But, I told her where we were going and, since we are friends with most of the staff and owner of the restaurant, she felt better about me going. Her condition for me going was that I tell her when I arrive and leave and that I don’t go anywhere with him. I agreed because this city can be pretty scary, and since I don’t have anything to hide, I agreed. Having a relationship with my parents is important to me, and I want my mom to trust me and feel safe about me going out. Plus, my mom is really the only parent I have, so I don’t want to ruin that relationship.

I arrived at Casbah at around 12:40 so that I could get us a table. The restaurant wouldn’t be too busy for a Monday, but you never knew what could happen. I texted my mom before I walked in. I smiled as I saw some of my favorite people gathered by the front desk. Two females and a male stood at the front desk talking over a seating chart. The taller of the two females was Siham and had long curly black hair. She gives the best hugs and her hair always smells sweet. The other female is Maya. She wore her black hijab and always wore a beautiful smile on her face. The male is Jamal. He has 4 children who he always talks about and was the first person to serve us when my family came into the restaurant.

“Eloise! It’s so good to see you!” Siham yelled in excitement as she went around the counter and gathered me into a big hug.

“Siham! It’s so good to see you! How’s your last semester going?” I asked her as she released me from her hug. Her hair still smelled sweet!

“I’m doing great in all of them except for that one professor. I swear, even when I can understand what she’s saying the words that come out of her are gibberish. I don’t learn anything in that class!” She said with an irritated tone. This same professor has been giving her problems all semester and Siham is clearly ready to leave the class

“Well, this is your last semester! Then you can go to med school! I know you’ll be a great doctor,” I said as she walked with me towards the front desk.

The front desk wasn’t really a front desk, but more like a tall table with glass on top that they write on with an expo marker. The restaurant itself gives off a very homey feel. Tables and chairs are moderately crammed in and the ceiling was covered in carpets with intricate designs. On the walls hung old pictures of the Middle East, glass bead lanterns, and instruments. The place smelled of spices and honey and wasn’t too full of people, unsurprisingly.

“Eloise! It is great to see you! Where is your mom?” Maya asked as she came around the desk to give me a hug.

“She’s working, so I came here to meet some friends. They’ve never been here before, so I knew they were missing out on the great food.” I said as I hugged Maya.

“Well, sad she isn’t here. Is your dad working as well?” Jamal asked as he tidied up the menus.

“Sadly yes, but next time he’s in town we will definitely come!” I said as I looked around to see if Draven and his cousin Anna were here. I spotted them in the corner facing towards me. They didn’t see me because they were sitting beside each other talking. “I see them, so I’ll talk to y’all later!” I said as I walked towards them.

The person, who I hoped to be Anna, was a beautiful blond. They didn’t look anything alike, but both seemed to command the room. People couldn’t stop looking at them, especially that group of college girls sitting across the way who kept taking photos of them. Anna had green eyes and was honestly really pretty. Compared to my 5 she was an 8 or 9 at least.

Draven looked up from his conversation and smiled when he recognized me. His eyes lit up and he stood up to greet me. Anna smiled softly at me and slid out of her chair as well. “Eloise! I’m glad you made it!” Draven said as he hugged me. I was genuinely surprised that he hugged me, but I wasn’t complaining. My arms could barely wrap around him and I was only as tall as his armpit, though his cologne smelled really good. He was wearing a red button-down shirt and blue jeans. He looked hot.

“Me too! I hope I haven’t kept y’all waiting long.” I said as Draven let go of me.

“Hi. I’m Anna. It’s nice to meet you, Eloise.” Anna said with a calm, sweet voice.

“It’s nice to meet you too! Draven told me that you’re his cousin?”

Anna smiled awkwardly, “Yes. It sometimes doesn’t even feel like we are cousins because we are so close. He’s like a brother to me.”

I smiled, “I’m glad you both get along. It’s great to have someone you can really trust.”

Siham soon came by to get our drink orders. I’ve been here so much that she didn’t even have to ask me for what I needed. She’s really sweet, smart, a really confident. She comes from Lebanon and plans to get her doctor’s degree in the United States before going back home and opening her own clinic. It’s really inspiring.

“I’ve heard you’re a picky eater,” said Anna softly as she stared down at her menu.

I blushed, “Um, yes.” How was I supposed to respond to that?

“Good. I am sort of a picky eater myself, so if there anything you recommend?” Anna said with a smile on her face. I relaxed and started pointing out things on the menu that I liked to get. All of them involved chicken since that’s really the only meat I eat. I really only eat chicken is because I’ve gotten really bad food poisoning from beef, pork, and steak over the past couple of years and really want to avoid those foods if I can.

“So, Eloise, how is your break? Are you enjoying it?” Draven asked as he set down his menu.

I took a sip of my soda, “I’ve definitely enjoyed it so far. I’ve read, watched a movie or two, and got to hang out with my dog.”

“Aww, what type of dog do you have?” Anna asked excitedly as she looked up from her menu.

“He’s a black lab named Moose. He’s pretty old and hasn’t been doing the best, so I’m spending as much time as I can with him,” I took a sip of my soda to stop myself from crying. The fizziness of my drink trickled down my throat.

“I’m sorry to hear that,” Anna said sadly as she glanced at Draven.

“It’s alright.” I took a breather and looked at Draven, “You said you had questions about my school?”

For the next couple of minutes, we talked about my school and its various activities. We talked about classes, clubs, grade difficulty, field day, spirit week, exams, and my thoughts on the school. I kept my true thoughts about the school mostly to myself but was fairly honest. If I’m honest I hope the school gets called out for its bullshit and slowly goes into bankruptcy and that the administrators in charge lose their jobs. I believe karma is a bitch and so is payback and that the school will get everything it deserves.

Anna seemed fairly interest in the school and we talked pretty much the entire time. Draven sat quietly listening and staring at me. I couldn’t tell if he was staring at me because of his interest in the conversation or if he was trying to figure me out. Though, if he was trying to figure me out he wouldn’t figure out much. There are many sides to me, and most of them are not known and are hidden very well.

Halfway through our meal, Anna had to leave because her mom needed her home. She apologized for leaving so soon and gave me her phone number in case I wanted to call her. That eventually left Draven and I awkwardly sitting alone. Well, Draven wasn’t awkward, the awkward vibe was probably coming from me. At first, we didn’t say much and just silently ate our food, but after the food was gone we started to speak.

“Eloise, I appreciate all your help. You’ve been a great help and you’re a really nice person,” Draven said after he wiped his mouth.

I blushed and couldn’t look him in the eye, “Thank you. No one besides my close family has said that. It means a lot.”

“I’m a person who has to say what is true. You are a kind-hearted person. That is the truth,” Draven said as he leaned forward trying to get me to look back at him.

I turned towards him with a blush on my face and smiled, “It’s hard to find honest people nowadays. So, thank you.”

Draven stared at me for a few seconds and then suddenly turned away and bit his lip. He looked angry or conflicted. I couldn’t really tell. He suddenly stood up, “I’m going to the bathroom.” Before I could say anything he walked away and I sat there dumbfounded. Did I say something wrong?

“Do you want dessert?” asked Siham as she took away our plates.

“Sure. Can we get the chocolate moose for here?” I asked as I helped her stack the plates to make it easier.

“Of course! Is he okay?” asked Siham with a caring look on her face.

“I think so? Maybe. I don’t know.” I said defeated.

“I think he’s just constipated,” said Siham with a wink. We laughed and soon Draven came back. His hair was slightly out of place from where it was earlier and he looked determined. Siham gave me a look before she walked off.

“Are you alright?”

Draven looked at me and softened a little, “Yes. I apologize if I worried you.” He sat stiffly in his chair unlike before. He stared at me and it felt like he was staring into my soul. I coughed awkwardly and he sat up straight. “Look. I’m going to be straightforward since I seem to have made you uncomfortable.” I watched him curiously as he adjusted himself. “I like you and would like to continue talking. I would like to talk about you, your interests. I want to get to know you. Is that okay with you.”

I sat there shocked and utterly speechless. I tried to form words but none seemed to want to come out of my mouth. He sat there patiently waiting for my answer as I tried to work out what the fuck just happened.

“Is this a joke?” I asked trying to make sure I wasn’t misunderstanding.

Draven looked shocked at my reply and shook his head. “No. I am serious.”

“You mean you like me?” I said pointing to myself. I was in utter disbelief. This couldn’t be real. Not even my past boyfriends were this forward. I had to ask both of them out myself and I’m pretty sure my first boyfriend was gay and he just didn’t know it. He was a really nice guy, but we just weren’t fit for each other. The second boyfriend, well, let’s not get into him.  
“Who else would I be talking about?” said Draven with a smile on his face.

I bit my lip as Siham set down our chocolate moose and smiled at me. Drizzled on the top of the moose in chocolate was a heart. I must have been red as a tomato as I replied, “Sure. I don’t mind. But, we’re not dating are we?”

“We can if you want to,” He said with a wink. He laughed at my flabbergasted expression, “We can take it slow and be friends first. I don’t want to push you.”

I smiled shyly, “Sure. That sounds great! Now, let’s dig into this moose. It’s one of the most delicious things I’ve ever tasted!

At first, the idea of having lunch with a 22-year-old businessman and his cousin excited me but also scared me. Some might have a suspicion he is a pedophile, but when I talk to him, I can see in his eyes how dedicated and passionate he is. He’s a good person and I don’t get any bad vibes from him either. I don't see any ill intent in him, but you can never judge a person by their outward appearance.

Considering our age difference, we get only pretty well. He's only 5 years older than I am, but it is still an age gap. Our conversation went pretty easy after that and I like that nothing seems forced. Also, his laugh is drool-worthy. It's a deep chuckle that has a little playfulness to it. It's one of those nice belly laughs, and I've only heard it a few times. One time was when I accidentally yelled 'shit' after I accidentally spilled some of the moose onto my shirt. I had to get a bunch of napkins and there was a stain on my shirt that he could tell was bothering me. He couldn't stop laughing, it was very cute. Okay, so after today I might have a slight crush, but my feelings aren't strong and our relationship is just friends - for now.

END OF PART 1. 

That night I laid in bed thinking about Moose downstairs. We put him down on Wednesday and I'm not ready. I don't even want to think about it. I didn't want to think about my family member dying. Tears sprung to my eyes and rolled down my cheeks. I wiped my face on my pillow and sniffled. I clutched my pillow tighter and silently cried into my pillow. I can't do this. I don't want to do this. After such a happy day, I didn’t want it to be plagued by sadness.

After I cried, I looked at my clock and saw it was 1:00 A.M.  I should've been asleep a while ago, but I can't sleep. My eyes feel puffy and my nose is running and sleep is the last thing on my mind. So, instead of sleep, I decided to write.

Once I logged onto my account, I saw that I had 12 notifications. I smiled and saw that people were commenting on the latest chapter of my book. They were excited that things were getting better for the characters and that I was finally piecing everything together. I was always excited when I got likes, but comments were my favorite. I got to see what fans were thinking, how they thought about what happened, and got to see how much they loved my story. Plus, it gave me a reason to continue writing.

As I was writing, I thought about my next project. I only had a couple of chapters left in the story and I honestly couldn’t wait to get it over with. I loved my book, but I was ready to move onto my next project. I was still developing the brother and sister story so I wouldn’t be writing that for now. My next project was going to be based on the Night Prowlers. I was curious about them since, as a society, we knew very little about them. We didn’t know if they were humans, animals, aliens, mutations, or even mythological creatures. There have been a bunch of conspiracy theories, which I find myself deeply interested in, but the one that seems the most probable is either nocturnal zombies, vampires, werewolves, or animals.

I asked some followers what my next book should be and they suggested vampire, so that’s my plan. I plan to wing it a bit until I can figure out a storyline, but it should end up fine. All I have to do is to finish these next few chapters and I’m onto my next story. I’m honestly excited because now I can start to truly become my own writer.

I sighed and looked towards my window. I frowned when I saw the curtains closed and blinds locked. I stood up and reached towards the curtains but hesitated. You were asking for trouble if you open your blinds this late. I paused so I could listen to hear if anything was outside, and instead heard my heart beating. I took a deep breath and silently parted my curtains and then unlocked my blinds. I pulled on the string to open them and smiled softly as the dark night sky opened up in front of me.

Once I saw the night sky it was like all the weight and worries on my shoulders were lifted. I've only seen the night sky a handful of times and tonight it looked beautiful. The moon was almost full and the stars were shining brightly through the night sky. I pulled my desk chair to where I could sit by my window and look at the sky. 

I watched as the beautiful, bright stars shone their light into the mysterious dark blue night. The moon looked down on us and shone its light onto the Earth trying to give us light.  I wondered if the moon shone its’ light down on us hoping to help us look for something. Something that we, on our own, could never find. I’ve always felt that the night held its secrets. It’s like light and dark. People show their true sides eventually, and when they do it’s normally evil like the night. Though, people do bad things in the light too.

Shadows were cast by the trees and buildings but it was all beautiful in my opinion. It was completely quiet and not even the animals made a peep. The night is like a fantasy land for most people. Most have never seen a star besides photos online, and most never will. I want to see the night sky, and so I did. I'm dangerously stubborn in this way.

I yawned as I looked at my clock and saw it was 3 A.M. I shut my laptop and smiled to myself because I had just finished another chapter. But, I struggled with myself because I want this character to be separate from me, but I put myself in all the characters. I put my pain, my joy, little bits of myself in each person I write about. One thing I have learned through writing these characters is that something not good– I am weak.

I want to be more like the strong, independent female characters who kick ass and aren't afraid to be themselves and go against what everyone else thinks. Those girls who are confident in themselves and are able to stand alone. The girls who put effort into their outfits, who workout, who have a positive look about themselves, but, I'm not like that at all. I'm shy around people and care rarely stick up for myself. I don't speak my mind and just agree to fit in. I'm not brave and confident about my opinions and beliefs when people challenge them. I'm weak but I wish I wasn't.

 

☾ ⋆*･ﾟ:⋆*･ﾟ:⠀ *⋆.*:･ﾟ .: ⋆*･ﾟ: .⋆

 

Right now, I have to put on a brave face. Today is the last our dog is alive and I should spend it with him. I put a sweatshirt on and put my unruly and unwashed hair into a ponytail. I made my way downstairs to find something to eat and saw Moose sitting in the kitchen eating something off the floor.

"That's a good boy!" I heard my mom say. I fully walked into the kitchen and saw her feed Moose a bunch of treats. She had tears brimming her eyes, but she wore a smile on her face.

"Morning mom," I said as I walked towards her. My mom stopped giving Moose treats and looked up at me and smiled. She turned around and grabbed a napkin from the holder and then wiped her eyes.

"Good morning sweetheart. How did you sleep?" She asked me as she fed Moose the last treat she had in her hand. Moose happily ate it and then slowly limped to his bed.

We both watched him lay down, "Good as I could considering..." I took a breath then looked at her, "You?"

She turned on the sink and washed her hands, "I slept okay, though tonight we both won't be getting any sleep."

She turned around and gave me a small smile. She looked tired and worn out and her beautiful brown eyes were red and puffy from crying. She wore a smile on her face because she was trying to show a brave face for me. 

My mom is 5'6 with dark brown hair and, unlike all the moms that are 40 and act like they are 20, she only puts on makeup for work and, even then, it's not a lot. She is considered "plus-sized" but she is far from it in my eyes. She works out and eats healthy, but it's only because of her genetics that she is plus-sized. My mom is one of my best friends and I don't know what I would do without her. She is feisty and brave and everything I want to be.

She stayed home today and tomorrow to be with me and Moose on his last day. Moose was originally my dad's dog, but he turned out to like my mom more in the end. They are best friends and hung out when my dad was at work and I was at school or studying. It'll be hard to see my mom without her best friend and son. My mom couldn't have another child after me because my dad was never home and she would risk her life in the process. So, Moose is like her son and second child.

Tomorrow will be difficult, but we will all spend the day together: me, my mom, and Moose. The only person missing is my dad, where ever he is right now. He promised to call and check-in, but with his busy schedule, he rarely has the time or signal. The last time I had a bonding time with my dad was probably about 5 months ago. I wouldn’t consider it bonding consider we both just sat in the living room watching baseball. I don’t even like baseball, so I had my headphones in and he was drinking and totally invested in the game. He’s promised for months now to bring me somewhere and catch up, but he’s surely forgotten by now. 

I sometimes forget I have a dad. Sad, but true. I’ve gotten so used to not seeing him it’s like he doesn’t exist half the time. I know he loves me but I just don’t know. He’s never really been there, and, as usual, he’s not here for the death of our most beloved family member. 


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I put the dog's death in this story is because I needed to also get over the recent death of my dog. This event did actually happen. The facebook post from 8 years ago did happen. And I have some peace there. I just needed to write this to help me get over it. I'm sorry if this hurts any of your hearts, but I needed to write this. Good parts coming soon. I promise!
> 
> ∞ Author ∞

I blew my nose loudly and threw the tissue near the trashcan. At this point, I didn't care where it landed because I would eventually pick it up. Everything was terrible. This day is terrible. Losing my dog is terrible. People are terrible. Not to mention all the fucking work I missed from school.

Mom and I have been crying since 9 o’clock and we couldn't even touch the lunch we bought. After he passed away, mom and I sat emotionless, except for the silent tears rolling down our faces. We were both in a state of shock. The tears didn’t let loose until we got home and saw his empty bed and all his toys laying on the floor ready to be played with. Since then, my mom has held onto Moose's collar and toys and cried. I couldn't look at her because if I did I would break. I did cry, though I did it silently in my room with my face against a pillow. I screamed, cried, and cussed, and by the time I had no more tears left, my pillow was soaked from all the crying and snot. My eyes were puffy and I didn't want to move from my awkward position on my bed. I was so tired but too afraid to go to bed. Though, at least I had some peace of mind that we did the right thing. I thought back to what happened earlier and tried to hold back my tears again. Death was a lonely thing. 

My emotionally wrecked state was brought back to the real world when my mom knocked on my door. I looked up and she had a sad smile on her face. Tears rolled down her cheeks as she clutched Moose’s collar in one hand and her phone in the other. I sat up and wiped away my tears and she approached my bed and sat down. I handed her a tissue from my tissue box and she blew her nose.

“I know Gus is in heaven peanut,” My mom said as she looked up at my ceiling and brought me towards her. 

I sniffed and looked up her, “How? How can you be so sure?” She enveloped me into a warm hug and handed me her phone. She didn’t say a word except for shuffling to blow her nose again.

I sniffed and wiped away my snot and tears before I unlocked her phone. The post that popped up was an old memory from Facebook dated 8 years ago. The image was of Moose rolling around in the grass with his tongue sticking out. He wore a huge smile and warm sunlight made his black fur shine. The grass was bright green and healthy and my old playset was in the back. I looked at the caption and sad, shocked tears rolled down my face. I cleared my throat as I read:

“A good day to be home. Sun is finally out after all this dreary weather we have been having. My best bud and I are outside enjoying the sunshine. It’s so peaceful and we are having so much fun together! Thank God for giving us these sunnier days."

“This can’t be real,” I said as I looked up at my mom.

She smiled and kissed my forehead, “God works in mysterious ways. This is his sign telling us everything is going to be okay and that Moose is okay!” I sobbed happy tears into my mom’s chest. The room felt different that afternoon - as if we weren’t alone. I’d like to believe Moose was really there, watching us mourn him but trying to tell us not to cry. He was my family- my brother- and I would miss him dearly.

 

☾ ⋆*･ﾟ:⋆*･ﾟ:⠀ *⋆.*:･ﾟ .: ⋆*･ﾟ: .⋆

 

I miss him and it’s still hard to think he is now just a memory and a chapter closed on my life. I don't want it to close. I think I cried more because I didn't want him to go. He was there when my dad wasn't. He was there when I needed a friend after everything that happened to me. When I cried myself to sleep, he was there for me. When I had no friend, he was there for me. When I felt like giving up life, he was there for me. I don't want my fluffy, pillow-like, snuggly buddy gone.

I knew we would be getting rid of his stuff soon, but I wanted something to remember him. Something that's mine and mine alone. I sat up in bed as I thought of what I could do. I couldn't just carry one of his favorite toys with me, nor could I just carry his collar or name tag. I mean, I want something preferably that I can wear. I don't have a necklace that has his name on it, but maybe if I had a locket or something. Wait!

I rushed out of bed and made my way over to my bathroom. I closed the door then turned on the light. I had to give myself a minute or two to adjust to the sudden light, but, when my eyes adjusted, I opened up my cabinet and pulled out my jewelry box. I sat on the ground and opened the glass lid. In the first section were pins I've collected, the second section was earrings from when I was younger, and the third section was my necklaces. I quickly found my locket and picked it up and inspected it. I got this locket from my grandparents on my dad's side. This is the last gift they ever gave to me in person, and that was 10 years ago. They aren't dead, they just refuse to see me or acknowledge my existence.

The locket itself was pretty simple. On one side of the chain was my birthstone, Garnet, because I was born in January. On the other side of the locket was my initial "E". In the middle was the oval locket. I opened it and jumped a little when something small fell out of it. I picked the small object up and realized it was a small saying. It said, "I love you to the moon and back". It was ironic coming from the grandparents that ignore my existence, but it fits perfectly for how I feel about Moose. I put the small object back into the locket and then clicked it shut. I put up my jewelry box and stood up with the locket in my hand. I looked at it wondering what to put into it to always remember my dog.

When I stretched I felt something prick me on my back and I yelped from the small and surprising pain. I searched for what poked me and found that it was a piece of Moose's hair. I looked at it and frowned, this is really all I have left of him. I realized, then, that I could put Moose's hair in the locket. I had to admit that it sounded weird, but this is all I had left of him. It would be my secret and my thing to remember my best bud.

I held the locket tightly in my hand as I quietly made my way downstairs. I looked and saw that my mom must have gone to bed because the lights were all off. I pulled my phone out of my pocket and turned on the flashlight. I made my way to Moose's bed and stared at it for a few seconds. I crouched down and put my phone beside me. I started humming a song. I love to sing, and I even sang to Moose almost every day while my mom was out at work. He used to love to listen to me sing and it was his favorite, and even though he couldn't hear me, I sang anyways.

I collected some of his hair and then kept it together with a piece of tape. I put it inside my locket and closed it before putting the locket around my neck. I normally don't like to sleep with necklaces on, but I would for tonight. I would wear it every time I went out and every day to school until I healed. I would have Moose with me no matter where I was. I crawled back into bed and snuggled up to my plushie. A friend gave it to me for my birthday. I haven't cuddled up to a doll in a long time. Tonight I would allow something to comfort me besides my aching heart and tears.

 

☾ ⋆*･ﾟ:⋆*･ﾟ:⠀ *⋆.*:･ﾟ .: ⋆*･ﾟ: .⋆

 

Monday morning I woke up to the sound of my blaring alarm. It beeped and beeped insistently until I finally got enough energy to reach over and turn it off. I looked up and saw it was 7:01 A.M. and I had only gotten 4 hours of sleep max last night. I groaned and slipped out of the covers but had to pause because I got up too fast and felt light-headed. I turned on my phone and, as I waited for it to turn on, I heard my parent's alarm go off. Their alarm was super loud because my parents both snored so loud that they were, sometimes, louder than the alarm. My parents combined snoring is like a symphony of instruments, mainly tubas, with their deep rumble and loud sound. It was seriously annoying especially if you shared a hotel room with them.

Once my phone turned on and I had my glasses situated on my face, I saw that I had an email from Dr. Whombug. I opened my mail and read what she sent me:

Eloise! Mr. Goodwin came by today and requested to see you, but you weren't here- such a pity. Here is his number so you can apologize for missing him: (XXX)365-XXXX. I know you had a valid reason for missing, but please message him a small apology! He really seems to like your opinion on the school, so keep up the GREAT talk about our fabulous school. Let me know AS SOON as he replies back!

P.S. Sorry for your loss. :(

Sincerely, Dr. Whombug.

I rolled my eyes and sighed at how passive-aggressive that email was. What she was saying was: Eloise, it's your fault for missing even though your dog died. You should have been to school. How dare you. You said you'd be there to greet Mr. Goodwin every time he comes here. You could ruin the school's chances of getting a donation. So text him and apology or I'll make your life a living hell when you take my required College Writing class.

Well, Dr. Asshole, I hate to tell you this, but I already have his number. So fuck you and your passive-aggressive, fake, uncaring ass. No one likes you anyway!

Before I could reply to the email, a text message popped up on my screen. “No way!” I gasped. “No way!” I whisper-yelled louder. It was a text from Mr. Draven Goodwin, himself! I clicked the text message to fully read what he said and smiled happily.

“Hello Eloise, it is Draven. I came to visit your school for a meeting and they told me you were not there. I just wanted to check in to make sure I didn’t scare you off.”

I silently celebrated then stopped and checked his message again. I smiled and set my phone back down then quickly picked it up again. It wasn’t fake! It was him! He messaged me! I gave him my number last time we ate not expecting him to contact me but he did! Did I actually do it? Did a guy actually slide into my dm’s? Gotta write this on the calendar because this is a monumental day!

I decided that I would get dressed and then respond, but my resolve and impatience won over and I quickly responded with “Hey! Sorry I wasn’t there, Moose-” I paused and collected myself. “- passed. Don’t worry, you didn’t scare me off.”

I set my phone down and got dressed in my uniform. I wanted to text more, but I didn’t want to bother him. I’m just a student who has a lot of emotional baggage and he’s just this perfect son of a company man. I stopped my negative mindset when my phone buzzed. I picked it up and smiled at Draven’s reply.

“I’m so sorry to hear that. You seemed close with him. If you need anything, let me know. Losing family is hard and I understand the pain all too much.”  
So, the perfect son of a company man does have some emotional baggage. I’m happy he is a man who doesn’t pretend to not feel pain. Just my type.

“Ty for checking on me. No one else has so it means a lot,” I typed back.

“Thank you for your kind words. You’re such a nice person, so I’m surprised no one else has checked in on you. ” He typed back. His texting was oddly formal and was kind of weird.  
“I am a nice person. I’m glad someone finally sees it.” I paused and debated on whether to tell him why people didn’t check in with me. I shrugged, why not complain to him and if he really wants to get to know me then he’ll have to listen to my ranting all the time. “I didn’t tell people what was going on with Moose. I don’t need fake people giving me fake apologizes and condolences they didn’t mean. I don’t need their sympathy.”

I quickly grabbed a cereal bar from the kitchen and shoved it in my bag before yelling to my mom I was leaving for school. I opened up the medicine cabinet and took my allergy medicine as my mom came downstairs in her pjs. She sleepily came over and gave me a quick hug and a kiss before going straight to the coffee machine. She wished me luck and told me I would see her around 4 today because she wasn’t in court today. I smiled waved goodbye as my phone buzzed. 

I quickly looked at it as I got into my car and started it. “Good on you. You know, for someone so shy around people, you have a lot to say.” I made a face at his comment trying to decide on if that was a compliment or not. I shrugged and put on my favorite playlist that consisted entirely of my favorite band Set It Off. I put my phone in the center console, so I wouldn’t be distracted and started the short drive to my school. Draven could wait.

~Meanwhile with Draven~

I stared at my phone waiting for a reply but saw no reply bubble. I decided to set my phone down and get back to work. There were a lot of papers to review and not enough time to review them. I grabbed the next sheet of paper and started reading through, but halfway through couldn’t understand a word it said. I sighed and rubbed my temples. I could not focus. I bit my lip and looked back at my phone as I clicked my pen and debated on what to do. 

I must have zoned out because Brahms suddenly appeared in front of me. I jumped and immediately stood up trying not to act like surprised, but instead, composed. Brahms stared at me with a weird look, presumably trying to figure out what was wrong with me. I cleared my throat and fixed my suit trying not to look at him, but instead, my phone.

“Looking at porn, are we?” Brahms said as he eyed me curiously.

I looked at him with a disgusted face, “Heavens no. I was just... concentrating is all.”

Brahms chuckled, “Sure.” He pulled up a chair and sat down. “Having lady problems?” He asked with a smirk.

My jaw tensed as I tried not to look at him, “No.”

Brahms laughed, “Draven! Having lady problems! I thought this day would never come! Let us celebrate your misfortune!” Brahms continued to mock my situation as I angrily sat in my seat and anxiously bounced my leg up and down.

“Make yourself useful and go get Anna,” I said as I picked up my phone pretending to be busy.

Brahms bowed dramatically, “As you say, sir of lady problems.” He started laughing hysterically at his joke while I gave him an angry sign. He continued to laugh even as he walked out the door and down the hall. He was seriously annoying and suspiciously on point.

~Back with Eloise~

Once I arrived at the school parking lot, I sat in my car and listened to music. I pulled out my phone from the center console and saw that I had another message from Draven. He apologized if what he said offended me and was only trying to comment that I was opinionated and he liked that.

I smiled to myself at how nervous he was that he might have offended me. Considering I’ve been bullied for half my life, a comment like that doesn’t bother me. Plus, I am entitled to my own opinion about whether people want to hear it or not.

I texted him back, “You didn’t offend me. I was driving and don’t like to be on my phone.”

He quickly responded, “I’m thankful that you weren’t offended. It’s rare to hear someone speak their mind. Normally people say what they think you want to hear. I’m glad you aren’t afraid to say what you think. It is a noble quality.”

Noble quality? Who the hell says that anymore? “I’m glad you like my honesty? I don’t really know how to reply to that lol.”

“Any other plans today?”

“Besides school, I have nothing planned. I don’t like to do anything after school in case they decide to give us 4 hours of homework. I don’t even go out on the weekend much unless its for food.

“You don’t go out? Why?” He texted as I turned off my car. School started in 15 minutes and I like to be early just in case I need help.

“Well for one, it’s one of the most dangerous cities. I also don’t have friends to go out with so I don’t really go anywhere. My parents are always working and needed someone at home with Moose. Plus, everything I need is at home so why go out when I can read, watch Netflix, and sleep.”

“I’m sorry you can’t go out. Maybe I could bring you somewhere if you wanted. That way you aren’t alone.”

I smiled to myself as I walked into hell. This day might not be too bad after all. “I’d love that. There is a movie coming up that I want to see, so maybe we can go together?”

“I’d love that. God knows I need a break from all this work, and most likely so do you. When does it come out?”

“It comes out next week, so we can go next weekend. If you’re free that is. Plus, I’d have to make sure my mom knew.” That last part sounded childish, but I wanted him to know that I wasn’t going to do something behind my mom's back or without her knowing. 

“Okay. I will check back with you soon. I’m excited to go with you. It has been a while since I’ve gone to the movies.”

“Well, I’m glad we can go together.” I texted back as I opened my locker and got ready for the day. This school really diminishes the light in my life and I can’t wait to leave.


	6. Eloise

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Mr. Goodwin (the rich guy) 
> 
> That is the actual contact name Eloise has for Mr. Goodwin in her phone.

I was sitting on the ground in front of my locker as I tried to draft my apology text message to Mr. Goodwin. I didn't believe I had anything to apologize for, but I might as well do what Dr. Whombug says before she has more of a grudge against me than she already has. What did I do you might ask? I have no idea. It's probably because I'm not one of her favorite students who follow her every command and have the same views as her.

None of my friends were here yet, and it gave me more time to draft my text. If they found out I had his number they would flip. Tina would most likely congratulate me for having the number of a hot, rich dude, but Karen would be creeped out. Eden wouldn't say much about it if I told her, but if something ever happened she would have my back. Eden is our silent mom friend. She won't say anything if we are doing something stupid until it gets dangerous and very serious.

I started typing up my text message:

Dear Mr. Goodwin, this is Eloise Wilson. I apologize for my absence yesterday, but some important- _I stopped and deleted 'important' and put 'urgent'_ _instead_ -business with my family that had to be attended to. If you have any more questions or concerns, please feel free to contact me via this number. Have a wonderful day.

I read it over a couple of times before I hit send and then clicked my phone off. I rested my head against the lockers and closed my eyes. Other students rushed past me with mixed laughs and conversations that I couldn't make out. I yawned and opened my eyes before I looked down at the necklace around my neck. I grasped it with my hand and tried not to cry. I was at peace with how Moose died, but it didn't make the missing him part any better. I took a deep breath and collected myself.

Someone plopped down beside me and made me jump in surprise. I put my hand over my beating heart and laughed as I saw Karen in her messy bun and her half drunken cup of Starbucks. Karen sipped her coffee and gave me the peace sign.

I rolled my eyes at her, "Girlie, you scared me." I checked my watch and noticed it was 10 minutes before class started. I looked around for Eden and Tina, but didn't see them anywhere. "Where are Eden and Tina?" I asked Karen as she finished chugging her coffee.

She wiped her mouth with the backside of her hand and sighed, "Tina had to bring in a huge project for some class and Eden was helping her. We picked her up today because her car is in the shop. She got _another_ flat tire."

I nodded my head and looked down at my necklace again. I saw Tina shift beside me and grab something from beside her. A pack of giant Skittles was suddenly in my lap and I looked over at Tina who smiled a soft smile at me, "I saw them yesterday when I went shopping and thought of you."

I half smiled at her and thanked her. I grabbed for my necklace and I saw her eyes wander down to it as well. I could tell she wanted to ask but thought better than to say anything.

 

The rest of the day was long and full of homework I had to catch up on and assignments I missed and have to complete by tomorrow. But, the day wasn't too bad considering I only broke down once. It was during lunch and I cried quietly with my head down as my friends hugged me and patted my back. I ended up eating all the Skittles in that big bag Karen gave me, but I didn't care that I would have a massive stomach ache later.

When I got home mom had already given away Moose's travel crate and had moved his toys into the attic. The only thing left in his space was his bed and it unsettled me very much. I hated walking by the area, but I had to in order to go to my room. The rest of the day I would close my eyes and turn my head the other way in order to avoid looking at the area. I found myself listening for the sound of Moose's collar tags clinking and the sound of my mom talking to him. I cried again that afternoon when I realized I would never hear my mom call his name to go for a walk again or hear the sound of his collar.

But with death, there is always regret. I regretted not spending enough time with him because I thought we would have more time. I wouldn't eat and I ended up just being alone in my room drowning myself in homework the rest of the night.

Though, before I turned off my phone for the night, I received a text from Mr. Goodwin (the rich guy). I opened up the message and read it:

_No need to apologize Eloise. I do not have any questions at the current moment, but I would still like to keep in touch._

I groaned because I am so screwed. I am in a mix between liking him and wanting to be as far away as possible from, but now he wants to "keep in touch". Like what does that? Casual conversation? A meme or two? Weather talk? Does he even know what a meme is? How old is he? What if he's a pedophile?

I clicked my phone off and then flopped onto my bed. I was too tired to be thinking about this, so I just sent back a "Sounds good!" and called it a day. I turned off my phone, slipped off my glasses, clicked off the lights then quickly fell asleep.

 

I woke up at 4 and couldn't go back to sleep. My alarm would go off in two hours and I wanted to get more sleep but my body just wouldn't let me. An hour into me lying on my bed trying to fall asleep, I decided to open up my blinds and looks out the window. I knew it would be dangerous, but I felt that looking at the sky as the sun rose would put some calmness back into my life.

My palms were sweating, not from me being hot, but from being in a nervous sweat. I knew that I was technically breaking the law, but no one gets to see it because they are too afraid to. I am tired of being afraid because for the first half of this year I was afraid for Moose. He was dying and it was probably painful for him, but the doctors couldn't figure it out till it was too late. I was afraid to lose my childhood pet and friend. I was afraid of how I would react. I was afraid to be lonely.

But now, I was plain defiant. I was a little mad at the world for taking such a friendly dog away from me-from us. Whatever was out there that made us cower in fear every night, I wanted it to find me. I dared it to at this point. What if this "monster" was just a huge setup? What if they just wanted to control us and there wasn't anything out there?

Suddenly I was brave and pushed my curtains to the side and pulled open my blinds without a second thought. My eyes went wide. It was beautiful. Oranges, and yellows, and reds mixed in the sky making patterns and swirls and colors I've never seen before. The orange colors clashed with the light blue in the distant but definitely outshone it. The light of the day definitely outshined the light of the night. At dawn, the world was born new again and it was magnificent. The houses were half in shadows and half covered in lights. Shadows danced their way onto of houses and on the ground. The animals were waking up and the trees reaching toward the sun. I can't believe this was hidden behind the blinds all this time. This wonderful, different side of the world was hidden from us. Hidden from our own eyes. I sat back on my bed and stared at it.

A bluebird landed outside my window and chirped a song. I smiled at it and watched it for a bit. It reminded me of a tie I saw recently. It was a yellow tie with blue jays on it. The tie belonged to Mr. Goodwin. He wore it last week, and when I asked about it, he said it reminded him of nature. Plus, blue jays are his favorite bird. It was definitely a weird tie but in a good way. If he was younger and I was in college, then maybe I'd date him. I mean conversations with him are fun, but at first they were awkward.

 

"I just want to thank you for meeting with me Eloise. It means a lot to have an honest opinion" Mr. Goodwin said as he down in a chair and ushered me to sit across from him. He smiled at as I sat down and leaned back in the chair. His voice and gestures commanded power and respect. You could tell he was a hardcore CEO. He demanded respect and you couldn't help but watch his every move. Not just because he was handsome but because he was mysterious and sometimes looked at you like a predator would look at its prey.

I kept my back straight and sat on the edge of my seat in case I had to run. I fidgeted with my lanyard and gulped nervously. He stared at me for a second before straightening in his seat. He softened his voice, "What would you like to eat? I can order us something?"

"Oh-" I thought for a second about what I wanted but thought against it, "What would you like?"

"You're the one taking your break time to sit with me -what would you like?" His lips made a half smile as he moved his arm onto the dirty armrest and then rest his head in his hand.

I swallowed and immediately thought of Chick-For-You. "Have you ever had Chick-For-You?" I asked him softly.

His eyebrows raised in confusion at the name, "No. What is it?"

So, of course, I had to explain to this handsome man what Chick-For-You was. I explained how amazing their food is, why I could eat it for 3 meals a day, and how all the employees are super nice. He listened as I geeked out over this fast food restaurant and didn't seem to be weirded out at my long explanation of this delicacy. I may have an obsession, but that's okay.

"Okay, Chick-For-You it is." He pulled out his phone 4s (aka a dinosaur) and dialed a number, "Theo, I need you to go to-" He paused and looked at me, "Chick-For-You. Get a chicken biscuit, 2 medium waffle fries, and bring the drink I was going to save for later." He paused again as someone on the other side said something. "Thanks," He said, then quickly ended the call and put his dinosaur back in his pocket.

"I'm famished? What about you?" He flashed me a smile and I relaxed, but only a little.

 

I remembered another conversation we had, but it wasn't about school. In fact, after the first 2 or 3, we rarely talked about my school at all.

 

I started laughing because this time Mr. Goodwin had already ordered us Chick-For-You and had it waiting for us in the lounge. Plus, he remembered my order. He smiled as I sipped the super sweet tea and relaxed. I stared at his mouth and realized his canine teeth were exceptionally sharp. I stopped drinking and stared at them.

"Mr. Goodwin, your canine teeth look like fangs. That's super cool!" Once I said that he closed his lips over his teeth.

He chuckled, "I get that sometimes. Genetics works in weird ways." He took a sip out of his drink and looked around at the various student artworks hanging in the lounge.

"Yeah. Actually, my grandfather has hetero.... hetero-" I paused as I tried to remember the name. Mr. Goodwin cut in, "Heterochromia?" "Heterochromia!" I exclaimed. "That's it!" I laughed a little. I took a bite of my food and groaned, _damn it's so good_.

"You must really enjoy this?" Mr. Goodwin asked as he took another sip of his drink. He looked at the paintings again for a couple of seconds then back at me.

"Yes-" I swallowed my food, "-thank you for getting it for me. I appreciate it. Especially today, the cafeteria food sucked. I mean, who can trust school cafeteria seafood? Literally no one. Unless you really want food poisoning or ruined tastebuds."

He smirked and leaned back in the dirty chair. I don't know why he insists to sit in such dirty chairs. They are covered in years of pen markings, ink, pencil, rips, and there is probably 10-year-old gum under the cushion. But, he insists to sit here instead of in an office room with cleaner chairs.

"Call me D-"

I couldn't make out the rest of what he said, "I'm sorry, could you repeat that."

He looked at me with a blank face, but a weird expression in his eyes, "Call me Draven."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the long wait, so I made this chapter longer! Enjoy!


	7. Eloise

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I apologize if character traits change. I am trying to develop characters and develop the story. Since this is my first real story, I am having trouble deciding on a personality for certain characters. Bare with me!

So, I'm technically not supposed to, but I texted Mr. Goodwin on my laptop during class. I was in theology and it was just getting boring anyway. She kept going on and on about the Catholic faith and by this time, had given up on trying to stop us from using our laptops. We would all pass her next test anyway because it was just common sense.

_Why is theology so boring?_ I texted Mr. Goodwin.

_Why are you texting during class is the real question?_ He responded.

_If they taught something interesting like 'world religion' I would actually pay attention._

_I agree that would be more interesting, but that doesn't excuse not paying attention during class._

_If I may plead my case, it is either I stay awake and text or I take a 50-minute nap. Either one sounds good. It's like a second free period! Plus, I finished half my assigned homework before I texted you. I'm not totally goofing off._

_Either situation isn't ideal, but at least you finished some homework._

_So, how is work?_ I typed out as I glanced at my teacher who was giving a passionate speech about the sacrament of Anointing of the Sick.

_Tiring as always. I'm always being pulled into a meeting and an endless amount of paperwork and planning. How is your day?_

_Good so far. I could use a nap._

_Did you not get enough sleep last night? You must take proper care of yourself._

_I got 7 hours, which is pretty good. But still, I think it may be this class though._

_Well, pay attention and you might actually learn something. We will converse later._

_Okay, Bye!_

I closed my laptop and opted to take a nap. I was just about to fall asleep when the bell rang and students rushed to gather their things and get out. My teacher yelled over the noise, "Our closing ladies! We can't leave without our closing prayer!"

The class groaned and anxiously waited by the door. I mouthed the words to the closing prayer and packed up my things. I was in a rush to get to Chemistry because I had a test next and wanted to review a few things before class started. On my way to class, I waved to passing friends in the hall and let my mind wander. I clutched at my necklace again and sighed.

"What is the necklace you wear? I always see you grab it," Mr. Goodwin asked as he leaned back in his chair. His face was neutral, like always, but his eyes showed curiosity.

I swallowed, "Its a pendant. It has-" I paused to bite my lip before I started tearing up,"-a precious item in it." I kept my eyes focused on the bag full of trash in front of me. 

After a pause, he spoke again but softer, "May I ask what?

I took a deep breath in and out then closed my eyes. I clutched at my necklace and opened my eyes, "It is the last thing I have of my childhood pet. We recently had to put him down-" I took a pause because my voice was going higher from me trying to hold back my emotions, "-and I just couldn't bare not having something of his with me. It is still hard to imagine the being that was with me since childhood-gone."

A tissue was handed to me and I wiped my eyes and then blew my runny nose. Curse the allergy season. We sat there quietly until I collected myself. I apologized and he said not to apologize.

"One cannot experience loss without knowing love," Mr. Goodwin said to me as he picked up our trash and threw it away.

 

I finished my homework around 6:30, "cooked" dinner, and then got ready for bed. Tomorrow was Friday and I couldn't be more excited for the weekend. A new episode of my favorite show was coming out Saturday morning and it just so happened to be the first episode of the last season. I wasn't ready for it to be the last season, but I knew it was going to be an epic one.

The show has been on for a while and involves vampires. Tina and I were planning on sleeping over at her house on Saturday so we could watch it. Tina and I are the only ones in our friend group who like the show, but Tina is more of an avid fan than I am. She has figurines, posters, plushies, stickers, key chains, and books evolved around this series. In fact, there is going to be a con in the summer that has a panel with all the actors on it and we were planning on going. We may dress up as some of the characters, but that isn't planned out yet. Knowing Tina, the cosplay will most likely be planned last minute.

I logged onto my writing website and sighed when I saw my views only went up by 2 since the last time I posted. So, I decided that this weekend I would another chapter to try and attract potential readers. The more chapters, and the longer they are, the more people will read the story. It was an original story involving some parts of my actual life, but are portrayed a little differently by the main female character Ruta Williams. It's my first real story, and I hope it does well.

But, until the weekend, I would sleep and survive Friday. It would be a good day considering I didn't have any test or quizzes.

 

That morning I woke up early again to watch the sun rise over the buildings in the neighborhood. I really didn't understand why they told us we couldn't look out of our blinds at night, but I would follow the law (no matter how stupid I thought it was). I still haven't seen anything suspicious as to why we would have to keep them closed. Plus, the hours to have our blinds closed are just weird. I heard they were going to make the curfew even longer.

My suspicions were correct, they expanded the curfew for our blinds. They dropped the news around lunchtime and the new curfew was from 10 P.M - 5 A.M. I wasn't the only one who thought it was ridiculous because a national petition was going around to change the curfew time. I would sign it, but I was too lazy to get involved in anything political at the moment. Poor college kids who wanted to party late at night. Those plans were now ruined.

The rest of the day, girls complained about how their social life was now ruined. I laughed because that was code language for 'now, I can't sneak out of my one night stands.'

For parts of the day, I texted Mr. Goodwin about random things. He asked me about how I was, I asked him what he was doing, we talked about our mutual like of reading. We discussed books for a while and I learned he isn't much of a romantic but agrees _Pride and Prejudice_ is a one-of-a-kind novel filled with both wit, humor, sarcasm, and romance. I told him what I was reading currently, to which he responded he had never heard of it. I explained the basic plot, but it was a romance novel so it didn't suit him. I also told him about this supernatural series I'm into right now. It has 8 books and counting and it is very well written. We discussed classics and plays and some musicals. I told him _The Phantom of the Opera_ is my favorite musical and he told me _Les Miserables_ was his favorite musical. We only talked briefly but made plans to discuss more on Saturday. He wanted to ask me a question about the different social media platforms and which one was most popular. Probably had something to do with a company meeting or something.

I asked him what he thought about the new curfew, and he said he didn't have much to say. His take was that it didn't affect him too much because he got up early and went to bed early. He, in turn, asked me about my opinion of the new curfew. I told him that it was now infringing upon peoples rights to stay up late. What if a woman went into labor and had to have the baby at the hospital, but couldn't because of the curfew. What about homeless people? Or the people that stay at work until late at night? What about college kids and early morning classes and late night dinners? Restaurant owners are going to lose money because of the new curfew that cuts off their opening time by 1-2 hours. Plus what if there was an emergency with me or my parents? He agreed that I had valid reasoning and said programs would possibly go into place to help the humans who had schedules that would conflict with the curfew. 

It was all just a mess. Why can't the government just tell us what the Night Prowlers are? Then maybe we'd be able to live our lives. Then maybe we wouldn't be stuck behind these blinds.

 

When I got home, no one else was home and I decided to get my homework out of the way. I still caught myself looking at the spot Moose was and expecting him to be there; I am disappointed every time. But, on the bright side, I didn't have too much homework. I was finished with it in about an hour and had the rest of the evening to myself. So, I decided to go get coffee and go to the bookstore to get a new book.

I sent mom a text and let her know where I was going so she wouldn't worry. She read it and then texted back with her normal: Be safe, love you, remember the curfew. I sent a 'thanks' and an 'I love you too' and then shut off my phone. No texting and driving.

I ordered the same drink at the local coffee shop that I have for years: an iced caramel macchiato with extra caramel. It was sweet and exactly how I liked it, but I only got it iced when it was in the summer. Then, I headed to the bookstore and immediately headed for the young adult section. I was looking for the next book in the A Court of Thorns and Roses series. I knew the newest one had come out a few weeks ago, but I wanted to wait and finished other books before I bought a new one. But, in typical book nerd fashion, I bought not one, not two, but three books. I knew I would finish them all by the time summer started, but it was good to have stress reading material during exam time.

By the time I got home, it was around time for me to make myself some dinner, aka call takeout. I ordered Italian food from my favorite restaurant and read in the living room until it arrived. When it came, I was starving and ready to eat. I wanted to dig into my cheese and ravioli and spaghetti with angel hair pasta. Yum.

I put my mom's takeout of a large greek salad, no croutons, and cheesecake in the fridge. I wrote her a sticky note that said her meal was in the fridge and then stuck in where she would see it. She wouldn't be home until late because of a "breakthrough" in a case she was on. When she had a breakthrough on a case she rarely slept until the night before the trial. Even then she was hyper on coffee and has to take an _Advil PM_ just to go to bed.

After dinner I noticed my throat getting a little dry and scratchy, but that was probably because it was becoming spring. Spring brought April showers, May flowers, and seasonal allergies. Every year I dealt with allergy-related problems and this was probably the first of many problems I'd have this year. My sinuses were probably just dripping and causing my dry throat, but I'd take cold medicine just in case (non-drowsy of course).

It was 10 P.M. by the time I finally checked the clock in my room and I sadly had to close my blinds and curtains and turn on the alarm. I know the law technically doesn't go into effect until later, but I may as well get into the habit. I closed my blinds and curtains, and after turning on the alarm, flopped into bed to binge-watch a show while I plot the next chapter of my story. Just because some events relate to real events doesn't mean I don't plan things and leave things out. Writing is harder than it looks.

By the time it was 11, I was tired and wanted to go to bed. Turns out the cold medicine was not "non-drowsy." I turned off my lights and then made my way through my dark room to find the bed again. Once I found it, I crawled back into the warmth of my covers and took off my glasses. I got comfortable and before I knew it my eyes were closed and I was off to dream. Or so I thought.

 

 

 

A loud thump woke me from my deep sleep. I looked around thinking that I had either fallen out of bed or knocked something off the side table. I sat up and put on my glasses but realized I did not fall out of my bed nor had I knocked anything over. I groaned because it was probably the animals running across the roof again. Squirrels, birds, and sometimes rats and raccoons ran across our roof. Coincidentally, a part of the roof was outside my window and I heard and saw animals run across it all the time. My window was locked anyway, so the animals couldn't get in anyway. I laid back in bed and was about to take my glasses off again when I heard another thump, but this time it was definitely louder. It sounded heavier than a squirrel or raccoon. I listened and watched my window for a couple of seconds before I heard a cuss word. It didn't come from me.

Flustered, I quickly backed up on my bed and put my hand over my mouth. My legs were tangled in the sheets, and as I reached for my phone, I heard a hissing noise from outside. I opened up my Life360 app and tried to find both my parents on it. Dad was in D.C. and mom was at her workplace. From that knowledge, I was both scared and at peace knowing my parents weren't possibly making that noise. I started to silently panic. What if it was a burglar? Serial Killer?

As I started to dial for 911 I heard another noise outside, but this time it sounded... wet. I swallowed nervously and pressed the call button. I watched my curtain even though It wouldn't help me see what was going on outside. I put the phone up to my face and waited for someone to pick it up.

"911 what's your emergency?" Said a male voice.

I whispered in a quiet, shaky voice, "I'm at home alone and there is someone outside my window." A thud sounded from outside.

"Are you in a safe place?" The responder asked.

"I'm in my bedroom. I'm too afraid to make a loud noise"

"Can you give me your address so we can send some first responders?"

I gave him my address and he told me to stay on the phone with him and describe what happened. I told him what I knew, but as I was telling him, I heard the sound of a mouse scream and then a small crack. I started shaking and silently crying.

"I think they're killing something. I heard a small scream and a crack." I sobbed silently, "Please help!"

"Responders are 10 minutes away. Is there any way you can make it to your front door to unlock it?"

"I can try," I said hesitantly.

I slowly creeped out of my sheets and slowly put my feet on the floor. Again, I heard a cuss word and a hissing noise. Something forceful slammed onto the roof multiple times along with strings of cuss words. I was shaking as I slowly walked towards my door. I slowly put one foot in front of the other while I stared at my curtain and hoped not to see anything bust through. But, while I was distracted looking at the window, I tripped over something on my floor and fell. I landed with a loud thump and as I cursed  I heard the loud pounding stop. I reached for my phone and must have accidentally hit the speakerphone button because the man's voice loudly sounded throughout the room.

"Mam? Are you okay? The police are 5 minutes away. Mam?" I quickly grabbed my phone and shut off speaker mode.

"Yes, I'm okay," I whispered back. I crawled towards my door now and still didn't hear any noise from outside.

"Are you out of your bedroom?" 

"No, but almost." 

As I neared the door, something slammed into the window. I froze and turned towards the window and saw my blinds and curtain ruffle, but the window didn't smash.

"He's pounding on the window! He's pounding on the window!" I said as I sat on my floor frozen in fear.

"Quickly and quietly get to your front door. Hurry." The man said calmly.

I rushed for the door, but as I did the glass of my bedroom window shattered. I yelled as I ducked and protected my head from the glass, but some glass shards cut the exposed parts of my arms and legs. I screamed again and dropped my phone. A small voice from my phone yelled, "Miss? Miss are you alright? Can you hear me? Miss? What was that noise? First responders are 3 minutes away." My blinds were ripped off the wall and the curtains roughly shoved aside. The moonlight shone on menacing red eyes belonging to an equally menacing figure.

My breathing stopped as I stood in shock at the person who was now inside my home. My room. He stood there watching me as I shook in fear. I felt like I wanted to throw up but instead sobbed, "Please don't hurt me!" I screamed the sentence over and over, but he didn't move. The person, instead, smiled and the moonlight didn't do much to expose any specifics of the person, but the moonlight did highlight another aspect of the person -their mouth. Their mouth would seem normal, if not for the blood coating its lips and the teeth also coated in a thin layer. Who the hell drinks blood?

"What do you want?" I said and I backed up against my door. Glass shards coated my floor and cut the bottom of my feet. I cussed at the sudden pain but kept my eyes on the man. "Why are you here!" I yelled at him as I cried. The being stopped smiling and then sniffed the air. He tilted his head and then flashed a smile that gave me chills. "Who are you?" I said as I reached for my doorknob. I hoped he couldn't see my arm move.

"Miss? Miss? Help is on the way!" The man's faint voice said.

The glowing screen made the glass shards on my carpet sparkle like crystals. The man then looked at my phone on the ground a couple of feet from me. He tilted his head and by the time I blinked he wasn't by the window anymore. I jumped as I noticed him now a few feet from me bending over to grab my phone. I looked on the ground and saw a thick glass shard. I watched the figure as he looked down at my phone and bent to grab the shard of glass. When he picked up the phone, the screen light shone on his face revealing what he looked like. He had light blond hair with specs of dirt and blood in it. His face was also covered in blood and was probably handsome.

The man let out a snarl and then broke my phone in half. While he was occupied by ripping my phone apart, I secured the glass shard in my hand and prepared to use it. He then looked at me and I moved to hide the glass shard in my hand and backed up farther against my door. I blinked and then he was right in front. His hand was over my mouth and nose and as I tried to scream he tsked. I tried to pry his hand away from my mouth, but he was too strong. So, I stabbed him.

He hissed and let go of my mouth so he could pull out the glass shard. He started shaking in anger as I reached my bloody hand towards the doorknob. He yanked out the glass shard from his side and as I tried to make a run for it, he pulled me by my hair and I fell backwards. My head hit something hard and I blacked out.


	8. Draven

_12 Hours Before_

 

"Thank you for reaching a consensus with me. It was a pleasure seeing you again," I said as I walked the American diplomat out of my office. His 3 bodyguards were stationed outside by the door and held no emotion in them. They wore crisp black suits and sunglasses even though we were inside and only started moving as we moved. They said not a word as we walked down the candlelit corridor and into the morning room.

"It is great to see you again as well Mr. Goodwin! I can't believe it has already been 6 months since we last talked face to face," He laughed half-heartedly after he spoke. He was stiff and on guard today.

"It surely does not seem that long ago, but why don't we discuss more casual things over lunch?" We paused as the maids bowed slightly and then opened the door to the morning room. 

The morning room was a medium-sized room, at least for the castle, and is where I would sit in the morning to read, catch up on work, write letters or emails, and enjoy some morning coffee. It was last furnished at the turn of the century, 19 years ago, and was still kept in pristine condition. We rarely had guests, so most of the chairs in the room were for decoration purposes. My favorite chair was a loveseat situated in the corner. It was close enough to the fire that, in the winter, I was kept warm while I read and close enough to the window, so in the summer, I was kept cool. Its window faced away from the sun, so it was not blinding to my eyes. The walls, itself, hung old paintings. Some were still lifes of fruits, some were paintings of sunsets, ponds, and nature, and, my personal favorite, an abstract painting that hung above the mantel. It seemed to change with the seasons and its meanings change as much as a person changes throughout their life. It was a nice room, but not my favorite.

My favorite had to be the library, which I had lavishly refurnished about 20 years ago. It included a red loveseat from China, a reddish-brown coffee table from Romania, and a red couch from England that was going to be used in Buckingham Palace but was the wrong color for Queen Elizabeth the first. All are old antiques and red is a stereotypical color for vampires, but the furniture is not my favorite part of the library. It is the hundreds and hundreds of shelves packed with books. We have books from when the printing press was invented in 1848 and even new releases. I like to boast I have the best library in the world, but there are a few things I miss. I am not a fan of romance or fantasy novels, so I don't have many of those in my library. I am very picky about my books, but I want to have it all. 

The guards waited outside of room once told to and we entered into the Morning room. It wasn't really morning anymore, but it was a quiet place where we wouldn't be disturbed. My friend plopped himself down into a chair and instantly relaxed. I took the seat across from him and poured him a drink.

"This is a Chateau Petrus we imported from France the other day. Try it," I said as I poured myself a drink as well. 

"You have good taste in wine, Draven." He took a sip and let the taste settle in his mouth a little. "Delicious. No wonder you imported it."

I gave him a smirk, "Of course my taste is good. So, what's new with the family Christopher?" I took a sip of the Chateau Petrus and watched as he adjusted himself in his seat.

"Good. My little girl is picking colleges and preparing for exams and senior year. We are actually bringing her on her senior trip this summer because I'll be gone most of the summer after she graduates. And, The wife is winning case after case but is pretty stressed. This break will be very welcome for all of us." He paused to take a sip of his Chateau Petrus and sighed, "Just wish I was home more for my family. Especially since our dog died last week and I still haven't been home or get to say goodbye. But, what can you do when you're the peacekeeper between a world power and a supernatural species." He gave off a half-hearted laugh.

"Well, it's nice to hear the family is good, but I'm sorry to hear about your dog. Should I send you home? I can get you home quicker than the government will." I rested my arm on the top of the chair and rested my feet on the coffee table. 

"No, I have to report back to headquarters with my full report before I can go home." He finished off his glass before setting it down on the coffee table than standing up to look out the window. "Anything new with you?"

I drank the rest of my wine and then filled the cup back up. I joined him by the window and watched the sun overhead be covered by the clouds. I took a sip of my drink, "Well, I finally went to that Oracle that Brahms has been wanting."

"Finally! He's been asking you for, what, 50 years to go and see the Oracle. What did she say?"

I opened the door to the balcony and walked onto it with Christopher at my side. I leaned onto the balcony and watched as some of the gardeners below me worked on the landscape. "Well, she gave me a clue as to where iubirea mea would be."

"That's good! So, have you narrowed it down? Met her?" He asked as he watched me curiously. He knew I was being vague.

"Well, I met her, but she's not even legal," I said before I drank the rest of my wine. The liquid burned a little going down my throat, but the small buzz is always a welcome feeling.

Christopher laughed loudly and I just ignored him, "She can't be that bad though? I hope she's hot-headed so you can have someone to keep you in check." He started laughing again at his own joke and I continued to ignore him. He stopped laughing and put his hand on my shoulder, "You look conflicted though, is something wrong?"

I took a deep breath, "I don't know. I've talked to her, and she's really sweet, stubborn, and can sometimes be charismatic, but she's shy, hesitant, and completely human. How do I even begin to reveal what I am, who she has to become, and that she has to give up her life for a kingdom she knows nothing about. It's to the point, where I feel like it would be way easier just to kidnap her and make her understand than to wait until she's 70 and too old to even move."

"Well, that does sound complicated." Christopher thought for a couple of minutes before he walked back into the morning room and out of the midday sun. "Well, have you ever thought of putting subtle hints that you're actually a vampire? You could befriend her, drop subtle hints like not eating garlic, wearing sunscreen, no silver?"

"First, those are stupid and don't even harm us. Second, she's underage and I'm supposed to be a 24-year-old businessman. There is an age gap there that her friends and she are already hesitant about. Wait till they find out I'm turning 25 for the 150th Third, I am not that patient. I take what I want." I said as I shut the balcony doors with a snap of my fingers. A gust of wind blew around us for a second and messed up Christopher's hair as it shut the doors.

"Well, if she is iubirea mea than you will be patient or she will hate you. Don't force something that shouldn't be forced," Christopher said as he stared at me with his straight diplomat face. He was used to my intimidation tactics and seemed unamused, but he knew who was more powerful. "I know this is a sensitive subject, but it won't kill you to wait a little longer. Plus, you'll have to appeal to her parents and friends as well. It makes things easier if her family and friends like you. Trust me. Evaline's parents hated me up until I asked for their daughter's hand in marriage, they still hated me, but just a little less." He sat back into the chair he sat earlier and watched me.

"We'll see," I said as I thought about my mate. To me, she wasn't fit to be my mate. She was some weak, shy human who can barely speak up for herself.

 

Christopher left my kingdom after he had lunch at around 3:30. He was anxious to get home and be with his family, especially since the death of his beloved pet. I was just happy to see my friend again, and now he has given me advice as to what to do. But, I must come up with my full proof plan before I can actually do something. I must plan it out to perfection so that everything goes the way I want. This may be one of the most detailed plans I've come up with since World War 2.

But, plans would have to wait because right now I had to give a trial to some criminals in our prison. I would be the judge as to whether they lived or died.

As a king, one of the main duties in my kingdom was to pass judgment on those who have committed crimes. In the human world, there are judges and lawyers and a jury, but we only have a lawyer and jury. Judges can be bribed with money, power, sex, and other things and to keep things fair I am the judge. I know I will judge fairly and no one would dare try to bribe me. The jury serves more as witnesses to the case and spread the word of the verdict. Though, all verdicts get posted in the town hall.

People don't act up as much as those in the human world do because they know that this kingdom is all they have. Once they disobey me (and their verdict is exile), they have no one to help them, no one to rely on, and no community to help them. They must find their own food. But, if they murder a human once they have been exiled they are now in the vampire hunters hands.

Trials happen on Fridays and Tuesdays and each case normally lasts up to 30 minutes to an hour depending on the severity of the crime. Longest one has been 2 hours because it was a psychotic vampire who went on a murder spree and killed an entire town of people. It was a small town in the middle of nowhere in Canada, but still, all the evidence produced against him lasted most of the 2 hours. Good thing I only have to judge 34 today. Some are re-evaluations which make things go by quicker.

Re-evaluations are cases where they have already served their time in jail. If they have served it quietly and made little to no trouble than they are let free immediately, but others get another sentence.

I put on my royal garbs: a fine tailored suit with the kingdom crest over my heart and threaded with gold. I changed the garbs from some stereotypical red and black to a more modern and stunning black or dark blue suit. I still wear the kings original crown, which is a little too flamboyant for me. I'm convinced the first king was either gay or had a very weird fashion sense. The crown does compliment my dark brown hair and brown eyes. Whoever said brown eyes weren't pretty sure didn't have the sight to know what was actually beautiful.

Once I entered the thrown room everyone bowed: the maids, the guards, the jury, and the prisoners. I didn't pay too much attention though, I had a job to do and an appearance to keep up. These people were subjects that followed me and would continue to follow me. I respected them only if they respected me. My dress shoes tapped on the marble floor but soon stepped onto the dark green rug that leads to my throne. My throne is the same one passed down since the first vampire king in 422 B.C. It has had some major work done over the years, but it is essentially the same. Beside it sits the queens' throne, empty for many years and where soon my mate will sit. Though she was pretty short so we may have to have a new throne made for her.

Once I sat down and dismissed everyone the judgment started. Cases, facts, and evidence were presented before me and in a long 5 hours, the 34 cases were all dealt with. Though, the longest and most interesting case was of Mr. Winslow. He was convicted of stealing extra rations of food and it turns out that the rations were for a pregnant woman who was bitten by another vampire. The man would not give up the location of the woman yet but told us that she was in grave danger. He was so worried for her to be safe, so giving up her location would be the smart thing. Well, stealing extra rations is still punishable for a week in the holding cells with food once every 2 days. Still, for his re-evaluation, I'll have to speak with him in private.

On my way back to my room, I stopped and grabbed some food from the fridge. There wasn't any kitchen staff except for the guards that guarded the food inside. Everyone in the castle could take what they needed when they needed it. After I finished my snack, I checked the time and saw it was 10: I saw Brahms quickly walking towards me. I watched him and immediately knew something was wrong by the way his face showed no smile. Normally a smile adorned his face, even after all these years, but this time his face was absent of it and his manner urgent.

"My King, there is an urgent call from Christopher. You are needed in your office." Brahms started walking towards my office without even giving me a chance to respond. He was walking with an urgent stride so I knew this couldn't be good.

When we got to my office, a maid handed me the phone and the voice of a frantic Christopher was heard.

"Christopher, what is wrong? What happened?" I asked as I put the phone on speaker. The maid walked out of the room as he answered.

"I-I just got off my delayed 5-hour flight to find a call from my wife who is in hysterics. She's said the police came to get her during a court case because someone had broken into the house and taken our daughter. The alarm was triggered and they received a frantic call from our daughter right before she was taken," he started to sob and I looked up at Brahms.

"My god! Christopher are you alright?" I asked him as he continued to cry. I was slightly uncomfortable because in the time I've known this man he has never shed a tear or shown weakness. It definitely bothered Brahm because he had to open the windows and take some deep breaths.

Christopher collected himself, "The police confirmed it was a vampire who did it. The blinds were even ripped Draven! Some psychotic vampire of yours has kidnapped my daughter and dammit you better find her!" He yelled angrily into the phone, but I knew he was under very intense circumstances.

"I'll do everything I can-" I looked to see Brahms staring intently at the phone in my hand, "We will do everything we can to find your daughter. Give us all the information you have on her."

Once we finished our call I called an emergency meeting of all my generals and council members. Brahms stood stiff and angry beside me the entire time. He was just as pissed as I would that someone under our control would step out of line and take someone, especially a harmless girl. Plus, this could jeopardize the deal we just settled with the U.S. government. Though, Brahms wasn't just angry but dedicated too. In his human life, someone had kidnapped his sister, raped her, and then brought her lifeless body back to his front step. Brahms eventually found the killer, but in the process killed himself and turned himself into a monster.


	9. Eloise

I was woken up by the sound of snarling and the loud slamming of a gate. When I tried to open my eyes a pounding headache stopped me. I tried to rest my head on the wall I was leaning on, but when my head touched the back a sharp pain shot through my body. I opened my eyes in shocked and gasped at the sudden pain. I felt the back of my heads and felt my hair matted together. I was confused until I remembered what happened that night. I quickly looked around and was disturbed and shocked to find myself in a prison cell.

The walls were a dark, cold stone that covered 3 of the 4 walls of my cell. The other side was covered in old iron bars and beyond those bars was another cell. I got up and when I moved I noticed there were chains on my ankles. The chains were pretty heavy and made it very difficult to move around but in my panic, I couldn't care less. I grabbed at the iron bars and yelled, "Hello? Where am I? I'm not supposed to be here! Someone help!

I felt myself start to hyperventilate, "Help!" I started sobbing as I shook the bars.

"Shut it!" "I'm trying to sleep here!" Came responses of voices from other cells.

I looked up and down the hallway as much as I could but noticed nothing other than cells and people glaring at me with menacing red eyes. Just like the ones from last night. I backed up into the darkness of my cell and started sobbing. I couldn't breathe and it felt as if the world was closing in around me. I knew I was having a panic attack, and the only thing to help me wasn't here. I started gasping for breath as I grabbed my throat and hugged my legs closer. This couldn't be happening. Where was I? Why am I in this hell?

"Hey! Lady, you good?" A soft male voice said.

I looked up wearily and tired because the lack of oxygen was getting to me. I could barely focus until someone from the cell across from me stepping into the very little light. His eyes were normal, unlike the other eyes I've seen, and he radiated peace and not 'I-want-to-kill-you.' My head started to tilt to the side and my vision started to go out as it got harder to breathe. I couldn't keep my head up nor my arms and so they both hung limply.

I started to fade in and out of consciousness, but, in what felt like seconds, the person from the cell across from me was in front of me. He knelt down and picked up my arm, but I couldn't keep my eyes open any longer so see what happened. I felt a pinch on my arm, but it didn't hurt.

All I know is that in a few seconds I felt my body relax and my eyes open again. I felt energized and the panic and anxiety I felt had disappeared. I blinked my eyes a few times trying to get bearings as to where I was and what happened when I suddenly looked up trying to find the man who helped me to find him waving at me with a smile on his face in the cell across from me.

"H-How did you" I paused, "What?" I was very confused and looked around the cell and at him trying to figure out what exactly just happened.

"Good. You're awake," He said as he smiled. He was standing in the light so that I could see him, but he wasn't touching the iron. He kept his arms and hands folded across his chest and just stared at me.

I watched the man across from me. He was unusual, but not in the sense of being weird. He had a peaceful air about him and he lightly smiled. He had green eyes, I think, and definitely had dirty blond hair. I adjusted the glasses on my face, actually surprised they were still there and continued to watch him. I rubbed my arms because it was kind of cold in the cell and felt a weird bump in my right arm. I looked down and saw that I had two puncture holes in my arms. I grabbed my arm and looked at him.

I angrily yelled, "You bit me!"

"What? No thank you?" He replied with a slight smile that exposed his canine tooth. But, it definitely" wasn't a normal canine tooth because it was much larger.

"Oh my God," I whispered to myself, "You're a vampire. I was kidnapped by a vampire." I stood up quickly and grabbed the iron bars of the cell, "I was kidnapped by vampires!" I yelled at him. I ran my fingers through my hair and looked back at him with an angry stare, "You bit me!" He laughed at me as I was trying to wrap my mind around my current situation. "What are you?" I asked him as I grabbed the iron bars again and angrily shook them.

"You already know the answer to that question," He said as he watched me.

"Just cause I know the answer doesn't mean I want to admit it," I said sarcastically to myself.

"Well, you're right. I'll give you your answer." He smiled and exposed his teeth, "I am a vampire. We are all vampires." My mouth flew open in shock and I paced around the small cell trying to figure out if he was joking. "How did you get here anyway?"

I stared at him and backed away into the dark of my cell, "Why should I trust you? Or any of you? You kidnapped me!"

"Well, I didn't kidnap you. Some other asshole did. Don't worry though, once a guard finds you here you'll go back home." I was about to yell for a guard but he stopped me, "The guards are all at dinner right now so your hope of escape is lost at the current moment, but don't worry. They'll realize you aren't supposed to be here and let you out. Plus, it is very rare to see a human in the vampire kingdom."

I stopped him, "Vampire kingdom?" I sat down on the ground dumbfounded, "What the hell did I get myself into?"

"Well, I would help you, but you decided you can't trust me. I mean, I save your life and all, but I get it. Traumatic experience with one vampire means all are bad. I get it. So, I'll just leave you alone." He walked into the darkness of his cell to where I couldn't see him. Things were terribly lit down here.

I grabbed at the bars, "Wait! Please! I really need your help." I started crying again as I begged him to help.

"Man, such a crybaby. What's the magic word?" His voice said from the dark.

I was hurt by his comment but I really needed his help, "Please, I really need you to help me."

He walked back into the light and I wiped my eyes with the backs of my hands. I also got tears on my glasses, so I had to take my glasses off and clean them with my shirt. Before I could register what happened the slam of 2 gates sounded and I soon found the vampire crouching next to me in my cell. I yelped and jumped back in surprise. In my shock, I accidentally threw my glasses across the room, but I didn't hear them hit anything. I felt a gust of wind and the vampire was in front of me cleaning my glasses. He smiled at his handiwork and then gave them back to me.

"Thanks," I paused to put my glasses on "How did you get over here?" I asked him.

"Well, I was giving my guards such a hard time that they forgot to lock the iron chain around my ankle. So, I am able to roam free but only between our cells." He sat on the ground in front of me and I noticed he was wearing a sweatshirt and shorts.

"Why only our cells? How did you unlock your cell and since you're free why don't you go tell the guards about me?" I said as I watched him.

"Well, if I break out I get a longer sentence and others would rat me out if they saw me. I won't disclose how I have unlocked the cell door, but I'll make sure to keep you company" He winked at me and I just stared at him. "I mean, I'm all for helping you, but I kinda have somewhere to be once I'm out. So, wanna tell me how you're here?" He asked as he leaned against the stone wall.

So, I told him what got me here and he listened with a confused look on his face. Once I stopped talking he didn't say anything for a while and I sat awkwardly on the cold stone floor. I had goosebumps on my arms from how drafty and cold it was and the stone was musty and in some parts wet.

"Wait, so you're saying that they broke into your house and took you?" He asked with a confused look on his face.

"Yes"

"That's unusual-" He looked at me for a second before asking, "Are you sure he broke into your house and that you didn't let him in?"

"Why would I let some being I didn't know about into my house when it would want to murder me?" I said snarkily. I was getting irritated and his questioning me was not helping.

"That is very unusual. It is strictly against our law to break into a humans house or even enter one unless we are invited in. This vampire must have either had a death wish or was newly turned..." He stopped speaking for some time as he thought things out. He seemed very confused by what I had told him and I could tell it wasn't settling right with him.

I was about to ask him a question when I realized I didn't know his name. I bit my lip trying to figure out if I should disturb his train of thought. Maybe he would get mad or think I'm annoying and wouldn't want to work with me.

"Stop biting your nails. That isn't a good habit and if you accidentally start bleeding there will be a riot down here." I slowly took my hand away from my mouth ashamed that I had not realized I was doing it and that I had bothered him. "You have something on your mind. Please, tell me." He suddenly said to me.

I hesitated, "W-whats your name?"

"That's all? My name is Winslow. Winslow Prescot. Nice to meet you..."

I somehow only know noticed he had a slight English accent. "Eloise.  Eloise Wilson."

"Eloise!" He said happily, "Such a nice name. Don't hear that very much these days."

"Thanks?" I said quietly. "Winslow, why did you bite me?" I asked him quietly.

He rubbed his neck awkwardly, "Sorry about that, but I had to bite you so I could calm you down."

I looked at him like he was crazy, "How does biting me make me calm down?"

He looked at me hesitantly, "Well, I kinda had to inject some venom into you. Our venom has relaxing properties and that was the only thing I could think of to stop you from passing out. I didn't take any blood, so don't worry." He looked away from me. His blue-green eyes seemed distant, "Guards can be ruthless to the weaker individuals."

I fiddled with my hands, "Thanks for saving me."

"You're welcome kiddo. Say, how old are you anyway?" He asked as he looked back at me. His eyes returned to having a happy look in them.

"I'm 17. Almost 18. You?" 

"Well, I'm going on 28 now for 56 years."

I tried to do the math in my head but was too tired; so I just concluded that he was old.

"We're going to be in here a while, so why don't we get to know each other?" Winslow offered. I nodded and rubbed my arms to give myself some warmth. Something hit me in the face and when I looked at what it was, it was the sweatshirt Winslow wore. "Take it. You'll die if you're too cold whereas I am always cold. Dead even." He laughed at his joke as I slipped on the sweatshirt. It was a sweatshirt with the Levi jeans logo on it and was very comfortable (and it smelled nice).

So, for the next couple of hours, we talked. He learned about the school I went to, my parents, what college I wanted to go to, my hobbies, etc.

I learned that he was originally from England and was born in Fleetwood, England. His town was right near the water so he grew up fishing and going on boat races with friends. His parents migrated to American when he was 16 in 1951 when the Civil Rights Movement was going strong. He lived in New York for a while with his parents before he went off to college at Vanderbilt. He majored in architecture and moved to California when he was 26. He was turned into a vampire because his girlfriend at the time owed some gambling money. Turns out, that she owed a vampire and just so happened to want to collect his payment while Winslow was over at her place. His girlfriend was killed and Winslow was turned into a vampire. Since then, he was brought in by the current King Goodwin and has worked doing maintenance on buildings and the castle.

"So, what got you into prison? If you don't mind me asking," I said as I messed with the strings on the hoodie.

"Well, first, tell me something about yourself. I've shared a lot with you, so it's only fair." He looked at me for a second before smiling, "Tell me about that necklace."

I grabbed for my necklace and clutched it tightly. I was relieved it was with me and surprised it didn't get lost after everything that has happened. "Well, inside it contains the only thing left I have of our family dog. He passed away on Monday and-" I started crying. He was right. I was such a cry baby.

I felt him hug me and pat my head, "It's alright. It will heal with time and acceptance. That's what people don't tell you. They tell you that time heals but so does accepting what happened. You can't change what happened, but you can certainly learn and grow from it. Keep your good memories and move on."

I cried only for a minute or two before I collected myself, "Thank you. I said as I wiped my eyes and cheeks of tears."

"It's okay. Just promise me that you won't cry for a while. Even if it's scary. Don't show the guards your weakness because they thrive on it, especially vampires in general. Okay? Promise me?"

"Promise," I said as I hugged him one last time before he went back into his cell for some sleep. Vampires needed sleep just as much as humans; I guess.

I don't know why I trusted this Winslow guy from England, but I needed someone to help me. Plus, even if he did bite me in the end and kill me I'd at least know that I sort of had a friend. I didn't know what hell I was about to experience, but having at least one friend by my side was worth it.


	10. Draven

Once the council members and generals all assembled the emergency meeting began. Brahms stood beside me stiffly and delivered the information that we knew. In the short amount of time he had to prepare things, he had at least a piece of paper with a description of the female we were looking for and a picture. The other members were handed a sheet with important information, whereas I had a sheet with more sensitive information. For example, I had her home address, parents jobs, and family history and possibly enemies list. You never knew with humans or vampires.

As I was going through the sheets I ran across the most recent picture of the girl. I looked at the picture in amazement and shocked at the fact that the girl on this sheet was the one who I talked to, the one who toured me around her school, the one who was Iubirea mea. I cleared my throat and Brahms didn't stop speaking but he looked at me curiously. I examined the sheet more thoroughly and tried to get any information that I could about her. Somethings about her I knew already, but other things on the sheet I had no clue about.

Once Brahms was done presenting the facts and what we knew, it was immediately decided that Brahms or I should go to the scene of the crime as to distinguish more about what happened. There may be a scent there that may lead us to the kidnapper.

"Brahms, I need to talk to you for a moment outside," I commanded as I stood up and brought my papers with me. Nosy vampires would try and look at my sheet.

"Yes, my king," Brahms responded with a bow.

As Brahms and I left to talk alone outside, a council member raised their hand, "My king, if I may ask one question?"

I turned around and saw it was general Ivy Lancaster. She was originally from Scotland and was changed by my mother in the Great Depression. She had migrated from Scotland because her family died and wanted to seek new opportunity in Amerca. She was sadly kidnapped and used as a sex slave for many years before she eventually almost became a blood slave (which are illegal). My mother was a part of the mission to stop blood slave trafficking and human trafficking. My mother changed Ivy because she almost died of an STD. My mother and Ivy were best friends.

"Yes, go on." I stood straighter and fastened the bottom button of my suit.

"How important is this girl?" Ivy pushed her firey red hair behind her back.

I smirked; she always asks the most important questions. "She's the vampire ambassador of the United States daughter." Backs of previous nonchalant council members straightened and generals looked amongst themselves in shock and with an urgency to find her. They knew the deal to give our kind the freedom it deserves was on the line. If they fucked this up, then they fucked it up for our entire kind.

I turned back around and walked out onto the patio with Brahms behind me. He shut the door and stood beside me as I leaned on the railing. We didn't say anything for a couple of moments before I whispered, "You even feel like when you know you've royal fucked up." I grabbed my sunglasses from inside my pocket and put them on.

Brahms looked at me confused before nodding, "Yes, but this isn't your fault Draven." Brahms slid his sunglasses on his face and waited for me to clarify.

I put my head into my hands and sighed, "Yes it is. That missing girl- human- is my mate. And she's gone missing. How am I supposed to tell her father? Being mated to her is a whole fucking mistake. She's too young, too naive, too shy, and she's too human. These people will break her or try to use her. Her dad is the vampire ambassador of the United States and one wrong move could have us back where we were 100 years ago- almost extinct."

Brahms slapped me on my shoulder and whispered excitedly, "Congrats though! You've found her! In a world full of around 8 Billion people, you've found your mate!" I hummed in response. "Can you not be such a sore ass about it. So what she isn't perfect? So what she's shy? You surely aren't perfect. I hope you know that." Brahms said aggravated.

I walked back into the room not wanting to hear his nonsense. I heard him mumble something about this is exactly what he was talking about and how this conversation wasn't finished, but I ignored him and continued the meeting. The generals and council members each decided on what course of action they were each going to take.

The generals would gather expert scouts and, once I brought back a piece of clothing with her scent, would be sent out to find where she had gone. The generals would also send someone with me, who was an expert in vampire signatures, to examine the crime scene. Vampire signatures were specific symbols, scents, or patterns that a person may leave behind or do when they commit a crime that may help lead to the criminal.

The council members would be sending scouts with information to people in town to see if they had any information. Those scouts would also be investigating other royal vampires to see if they may have had a hand in this kidnapping. Local vampire gangs were also going to be investigated.

It wouldn't take too long to go to the crime scene, investigate, then be back because we only lived two hours away by car, but, with a plane, would take about 30-40 minutes. I exited the meeting room to send a guard to get the car and plane preparations available and after was confronted by Ivy. She smiled a knowing smile at me, looked me up and down, and then walked away to get her scouts ready. It was hard to judge her because no one knew if she knew too much or pretended to know too much. She, just like her name, could sometimes be a pain in the ass.

"Sir, preparations for the mission have been decided on. Please come inside and finalize the details so we can start as soon as possible," said the voice of council member Livia.

Livia was quiet and normally refrained from inserting her opinion unless needed. She was more the type to analyze the situation and come up with a median. She was rational at times but was often keen on trying to push her own agenda. She wanted us to take our power instead of slowly integrating with society so we wouldn't produce mass hysteria. I didn't want to start the next world war, but I wanted our kind to have the freedom we deserve. Though, she was respectful of other peoples opinions and often tried to have two opposing views agree on a median. She was an excellent speaker and I appreciated and respected her authority and views.

"Of course, thank you for all your help," I said as I opened the door for her.

She smiled, "No problem."

The meeting quickly finished with each council member and general assigned to a task. Each had their own role and played their own part in the search. Ivy, as head general, was in charge of gathering her best scouts and briefing them. Livia was in charge of gathering scouts to specifically look into the gangs. Gangs weren't much different than human gangs except kept themselves more prominent. Not all gangs were bad, but some wanted power and control over the blood market in the vampire world and drug trafficking in the human world. We've had a problem before, but they were always kept in check. Brahms was in change of getting progress reports from each member and relaying the information back to me.

 

I set out almost at once with Brahms and a scout to the airstrip we had in the kingdom. We were immediately escorted onto the plane and would soon arrive near Louisville, Kentucky. We would most likely get there before Christopher since he had to fly with civilians to keep his job hidden. No one in the United States except for a select few in Congress, the House of Representatives, and the President knew about Christopher. He practically didn't exist in the government system so that he couldn't be tracked. But, to his family, he was very real and I knew that his wife must be in a lot of pain without him there to support her.

In the seat beside me, I had flowers and chocolate to give to Eloise's mom to offer some sort of condolences. I had only met his wife once and it was only for a brief period of time, but I knew she was a hardworking and loving individual. She cared very much about her family, especially her daughter, and had a passion for her job. I would hate to have her as my enemy in court.

The scout was sitting in the cockpit of the plane watching the pilot to make sure nothing goes wrong and Brahms sat across from me. Assassination attempts sometimes happen to Brahms and me even though it is pretty hard to kill us. Attempts have happened before, but we aren't high in our position for nothing. We are constantly in the gym or training and sparing. We don't like looking and being weak because weakness is what will get you killed. 

Brahms looked out the window, but I could tell he wanted to say something. He started biting his lip and tapping his hand on the table and eventually he couldn't hold his question in. He turned towards me again and grabbed the folder that I was currently looking at. I gave him a look but he ignored me as he searched through the papers until he found the one he wanted. He took out the sheet of paper with Eloise's information on it and turned it around for me to see.

"So you're telling me, that you'd rather give up your chance at happiness because she might be a weakness," He paused but continued before I had time to respond. "She's beautiful; just needs a little work. I'm telling you that you aren't perfect Draven and if you think you are, you need to get your head out of your ass. You're a vampire king, but that does not make you perfect. Your 'I'm-better-than-everyone' attitude is seriously pissing me off. You were once human too. I know you don't like to bring it up, but it's true. You were like her-" he pointed at her picture, "-and your pride will be your demise. I'm saying this all as a friend but meeting your mate is a big deal. Don't take it for granted. Maybe entertain the idea that she will lift you up and make you a better king. I know mine has."

I looked away from him and sighed, "I have to act like I"m better than everyone else or someone will take my th-" Brahms interrupted me with a sigh, "You can act all you want, but that doesn't mean you are better than everyone else." His eyebrows furrowed as he saw he was getting nowhere with me. He rubbed his hands on his forehead. "Look, I know you're nervous to see if your mate is okay, but please don't be an ass. It will make things go a lot smoother."

I chuckled and let a small smile come to my lips. Brahms laughed," See, there is the Draven I know and love and sometimes want to strangle." We were quiet for a while before Brahms organized the papers again and handed them to me. Before he let go of the folder, he looked me in the eyes, "Just give her a good chance to prove herself. She may be stronger than she looks."

"I promise," I said and took the folder from his hand. He smiled and went on looking out the window.

 

When we arrived at the Wilson house, the police had left and all that was left were nosy neighbors and a quiet house. I parked the car in their short driveway next to a gray Toyota. Brahms glanced at the car curiously and I just shrugged. Probably someone wanting to give their condolences.

Brahms rang the doorbell as I held the flowers and chocolate in my hands. We waited patiently for a couple of seconds before a tired and red-eyed Mrs. Wilson answer the door. She clutched an old toy in one arm and a tissue in her hand. I looked over her shoulder and saw 2 men comforting each other in the hallway of the second floor.

Mrs. Wilson weakly smiled when she saw us, but her eyes were full of disappointment. She was expecting her husband. "Hello, may I ask who you are?" She asked as she clutched the old toy. It was clearly worn by years of use and probably her daughters.

"We work with your husband Mrs. Wilson and are here to help with the search for your daughter. My name is Draven Goodwin and this is Brahms Hellsham, my work partner," I explained with a calm voice. She looked around and did not meet my gaze. She was looking for something.

"Oh," She thought for a second and then looked me and Brahms up and down. "My husband Roger is so silly sometimes," She still stood guarding the entrance to her house. Her shoulders were filled with tension and she was on guard.

I could feel Brahms looking at me confused as to what she meant; her husband's real name was Christopher, so why would she lie? But, this was probably what her husband told her to do if anyone came to the house saying they knew him from work. If she said a different name, that would possibly throw potential killers or spies off. Smart.

"Isn't your husband's name Christopher Wilson?" I said with a small smile.

The tension in her shoulders lessened and she relaxed, "Welcome then. Please, come inside." She stepped aside and allowed us into the house. Immediately I was hit with the smell of Eloise and the tension in my back lessened. Other smells were mixed in the house: Eloise's mom, perfume, cologne, and a faint scent of Christopher and a dog. I froze, Eloise's dog just passed, and now her family also has to deal with the loss of their daughter. Rough. Very rough.

Brahms thanked her for welcoming us as I looked around the small condo. The entrance was small and I could easily touch the ceiling without trying. A small light hung that I had to duck under and to the left were family photos from at least 12 years ago that hung on the walls. Eloise was still a toddler in the pictures and her parents younger and carefree. To the right was a small shoe rack and then the stairs leading to upstairs. A metal railing followed the carpeted staircase up to the second floor and from the look of the carpet you could tell it was old. The flooring was new on the first floor and a nice gray color that complimented the tan wall. Remnants of dog hair laid dormant under the staircase and the T.V. quietly played in the background. As we were given the tour of the house, I noticed everything was quite old. Mrs. Wilson explained that this house wasn't touched for 30+ years so things are still being remodeled, which made sense.

Before we went upstairs, we told Mrs. Wilson what we were here to do and she seemed both relieved and hopeful that we would be able to help. She quickly ushered us upstairs where we were introduced to Eloise's "family." They weren't actually related to Eloise by blood but were closer to family than her real family. They nicknamed themselves the 'Gunkles' (Gay Uncles) and they were only 2 of the 6 in the Gunkle group. The smaller one with black hair with hints of gray speckled in it was Seth and his boyfriend, the taller one, with light blond hair (also speckled with gray) was Glen. They told us they thought of Eloise as their own child and were sad to see such a tragedy happen. They both clutched a photo in their hand and Glen had his arm around Seth comforting him. You could tell they truly loved each other.

I had to admit, the gay uncles caught me off guard because Eloise mentioned nothing of them when I talked to her. It really isn't her fault though; I never asked and she never told.

Once we were shown Eloise's room I was bombarded with her smell: sweet like maple syrup, but salty like the sea. I calmed only for a second because when I opened my eyes the scene was definitely one of struggle and chaos. There was glass everywhere and one of the curtains had a smeared bloody handprint on it while the other was completely ripped. The bed was unmade and messy and the sheets bundled up as if someone pushed them to the side. The carpet by the door was spotted with dry blood and fragments of glass shone in the light of the broken window. In my observation, Mrs. Wilson had left to go downstairs with Glen and Seth and left us alone. Perfect.

I walked towards the window and whistled and soon the scout hopped off the roof and into the room. I stood to the side as I watched him work around the room examining and smelling things. Brahms looked around the room sadly and his eyes showed that he wasn't in the present, but somewhere else in his mind.

I looked around the room and tried to get a sense of Eloise's character. The bedding was a light blue that slowly faded to dark and her pillows each had a pillowcase with a different color. There was a plushie sitting on her bed and it was pretty big and, when I picked it up, seemed to be some egg thing with a face and was surprisingly soft and had a large butt. Okay, so she liked weird things. There was a desk with family photos with her parents and grandparents sitting in one corner and a basket filled with random things in the other. In the middle sat a laptop with random stickers on it. There were random small dolls on her shelves which were pretty detailed. I picked up one and tried to read the tag, but it was in Japanese and my Japanese was not good. But, it had something to do with black. She had a bookshelf filled to the brim with books of different colors, shapes, and sizes and I noticed it was organized by the height of the book, not the author. I rolled my eyes, it should clearly be organized alphabetically. On top of the bookshelf sat old dolls and things that must hold a special meaning to her. On the nightstand sat a copy of _Phantom of the Opera_ and was barely even read by the placement of the bookmark. Clothes sat in a small pile by the door, in typical teenager fashion, and there was some organization but not much.

Brahms picked up a piece of clothing from the floor and called my name, "Look, at least she has good taste." The shirt had a picture of a popular 60's band called Frankie Vallie and the Four seasons printed on it. I hummed and almost missed the red on the back of the doorway.

"Scout. Come here," I said as I closed the door to reveal a bloodstain on the white door. In the dried blood sat a piece of hair, which the scout picked up and examined, and then smelled the blood and then around the room.

The scouts face looked confused for a second before he straightened up, "I think I know who did it sir, but we must head back home immediately. This could be bad."

 


	11. Eloise

"So, tell me about your family," Winslow said as he laid on the cold floor of my cell.

"Well, it's mostly just my mom and me because my dad is always working. He does some top secret stuff for the government so he can't talk about it and is always gone. He comes when he can though and spends as much time with mom and me as he can. He's a great dad," I said as I sat by Winslows feet. He got comfortable around me very quickly.

"I need names. Mom's name, dad's name. I want to picture these people in my head," Winslow said as he talked expressively with his arms. He talked with his arms a lot.

"Well, my dad's name is Christopher Wilson and my mom's name is Lily. Mom is a criminal justice lawyer and kicks ass in court. She's won most cases and is passionate about what she does, but some cases wear on her more than others. If that happens, we have a girl day and watch movies, read, get our nails done, go shopping, or eat food we aren't supposed to eat because she's on a diet. She's honestly my best friend other than another person I knew. We get along really well unless it's that time of the month. We can both be really cranky." I laughed a little remembering all the times we've had fun. I wanted to sing with her again in the kitchen or dance to a song at a stoplight.

"So, tell me about this other best friend. You said you 'knew her', but if she's your best friend then don't you know her?" Winslow asked me as he sat up confused. 

I leaned my head back on the stone brick making sure to not hurt the healing scar on the back of my head. "It's complicated..." I said sadly.

"Well, everything isn't easy and we have plenty of time. You'll at least be stuck here until we get a guard to notice or until judgment day which is still 3 days away. So, spill" Winslow had his full attention on me now.

I sighed, "You're right. So, I met Rose at an art camp when I was 10. She was 9, but from the moment we met, it was like an instant connection. We were both goofy, silly, and definitely about to reach that awkward phase of puberty. She was shorter than me and pretty skinny. She had brown hair cut to her chin and we both wore glasses. I was a fatter kid, and so we definitely looked like complete opposites of each other.

Our personalities are like opposites as well, she is very quiet if she doesn't know you, but once she knows you she was goofy and silly and wouldn't shut up. I didn't know a stranger, but once I knew you I hid things about myself. But, we helped each other grow more comfortable with ourselves and eventually grew inseparable. Though, the reason I talked to her was that another girl, who I thought was my friend, started to ignore me so I wanted to get revenge by talking to another girl. We made up a handshake and we didn't have phones then so it was up to our mom's to set things up. I remember that her mom brought her to the camp and I thought that she was really pretty.

Rose and I met up a bunch at each other's houses and eventually became like my mom's second child. I was there when her mom married her stepdad and moved from their cramped house into a bigger one. I watched as she got 2 cats and 2 dogs which we constantly played with when I went over. We were the best of friends and I remember specifically doing really stupid stuff with her. I fought a fever while I was over at her house, I watched her as she drew and got better and better, I was there as she learned how to use makeup, and I was there when her mom started cheating on her stepdad who was fighting in Iraq.

At first, her mom would randomly leave and it would be every 2 or 3 weeks that Rose would be left alone for most of the day so we would call and talk and goof around, but then it became more and more frequent. When her stepdad came home, Rose was ecstatic to spend time with him. He loved her as his own child and spoiled her when he could, but because her mom kept spending more and more of their money he had to be gone more often than be home. Eventually, it got to the point where Rose had to spend the whole summer with us because her mom had locked her in the house with no food and the electricity and water cut off from her not paying the bills. Her stepdad had no idea that this was going on. Rose was on her own for a week with barely any food except for junk before she asked to borrow a neighbors phone and called my mom.

When we got there the house was at least over 100 degrees because it was the middle of the summer and Rose had a bag packed. We tried to contact her mom, but she would never answer her phone. So, Rose spent the entire summer with us right up to before school started. The last time I saw her was when her stepdad came to pick her up. She promised to see me soon, but I haven't seen or heard from her in 5 years. I don't know if she went into the foster system or if she's still in the country or even if she's dead. She's just gone. But, she knew me better than anyone. She was the sister I never had," I used the sleeves of the sweatshirt to wipe my eyes and Winslow sat in front of me with pity in his eyes.

After a moment he responded, "I am sorry. If fate has it, you will see your friend again."

I nodded and we sat in silence until many questions gnawed at me for answers, "What kingdom are we in exactly?"

"We are in a kingdom called Kovia which was founded in 1403. It was named after the first vampire kings wife and coincided in peace with the Indians until Columbus discovered America. I'm assuming you've learned of the American-Indian war, correct?" I nodded. "Well, the kingdom became split because half sided with the colonists and the other half with the Indians. Of course, the Indians badly lost the war and the vampires who rebelled and went with the Indians were executed by fire. Since then, we have kept our secret hidden and made deals with each incoming president. Only a few know of our existence, but those who do know take the pledge. They pledge never to say a word to anyone about our existence unless we give permission," Winslow explained.

"Interesting..." I paused as I thought about what he told me, "Who is the king/queen?"

"Our current king is Draven Goodwin, the son of River and Leopold Goodwin. He has yet to find his mate though, which is qui-" "Did you just say Goodwin?" I said trying to clarify.

Winslow looked at me confused, "Yes. Draven Goodwin. I've said his name before though."

My eyes went wide and my face contorted into a mix of shock and confusion, "Fuck." Winslow looked startled by my cussing. "I know him," I said quietly as I ran my fingers through my head trying to grasp the current situation. Why did I not recognize the name when he said it the first time?

Winslow looked at me confused and baffled, "You know him?"

"I know him," I said trying not to freak out. So, the CEO man who I thought was hot and sexy and who my friends said was 'weird' and I 'shouldn't talk to' because he's in his mid 20's is secretly a vampire king who was trying to lure me into my possible death or be used as some type of blood slave. He lied to me about his identity, his job, what else did he lie about? His shoe size? (He didn't actually tell me). Did everything he tell me a lie? Was he going to kill me? What if he's the reason I'm in here and wants to watch me slowly die?

"Wait, how do you know him?" Winslow said as he grabbed me by my shoulders.

So, I explained to Winslow how I apparently knew the king of the vampires and how I was apparently lied to and used, but Winslow wasn't sure about the used part. He said that this may be a whole big misunderstanding but I retorted with: then why am I in a prison cell in a hall filled with other criminal vampires with no food or water. He didn't have an answer for that. But, Winslow kept assuring me that this all had to be a huge misunderstanding because he was a 'nice guy' and 'likes humans' and would 'never hurt us.' Every vampire in every fucking movie says that, but guess what they are doing 30 minutes later to the same person they said they'd never hurt.

In my rage, frustration, and baffled state I forgot about my empty stomach, but not for long. Soon, I was huddled in the corner of my cell dry heaving and coughing while Winslow held my hair up and glasses. I hadn't eaten in at least 24 hours and my stomach was already killing me. I felt like my stomach was going to eat itself and I felt nauseous. Thank goodness Winslow was there because I would be a sobbing mess if he wasn't there.

 

It has been at least 2 days since I was kidnapped and I was currently sitting in Winslow's lap as he tried to warm me up. I was past starving, cold, and dehydrated and I had little to no energy. I had a headache from the low lighting and the screams and laughter of others in the cells made it hard to sleep. I felt like I got rolled over by at least 4 semi-trucks and my hair was a tangled mess. I had thrown up last night and it was mostly stomach acid.

But, I wasn't the only one looking bad. Winslow looked pale, for a vampire, and he made sure I didn't cut myself on anything. I knew he was probably hungry and needed to drink some blood, but I knew from the look on his face that he refused to feed on me. I felt bad, but I was in no condition to help him and he knew that. I don't know the last time he fed, but he didn't look good and was on edge.

A guard hadn't walked by the whole time I was there and I was starting to get worried and so was Winslow. Winslow tried not to worry me, but I could tell normally guards are walking around and monitoring things. Winslow constantly was listening and watching and did his best to keep me warm. He was anxious to find a guard.

But, today seemed like our lucky day because suddenly Winslow put me off his lap and rushed into his cell. I weakly lifted my head and heard, a couple of seconds later, the steps of a guard. He stopped in front of Winslows' cell and threw him something from a bag he was wearing.

"Food," was all the guard said before he turned to walk away.

"Please," I said as loud as I could "I'm dying. I need food and water." My voice cracked and my tongue stuck to the top of my mouth from how dry my mouth was.

The guard turned his head to look at me and eyed me up and down as I sat on the ground weakly. He walked over to something besides my cells and read something. "Says here that you're supposed the starve until you get your trial."

"What?" I croaked out, "Please sir. I haven't done anything!"

He scoffed, "Like I don't hear that every day."

"When will the trial be?" said Winslow from his cell.

"None of your business," said the guard angrily.

"It will be your business if she dies. What will the king say then? You know he hates unfair punishment. Give the human food," Winslow said as he grabbed the iron bars on his cell. A smell of burning flesh soon filled the room, but Winslow still glared angrily.

The guard scoffed than threw me something from inside his bag. He said nothing as he walked down the hall giving people meals. I grabbed the bag and realized it was blood. I yelped and threw the bag away from me. 

"I can't eat that!" I yelled down the hall but the guard was already gone. I wanted to cry but no tears would come out. I gripped the cold iron bars and banged my head against them in frustration.

Winslow was soon beside me and his skin was already filled with color again. He looked better, but not as well as he should be. He stopped my head from hitting the bars and pulled my cold hands from the freezing iron bars. He pulled me to the corner and tried to warm me. He was warmer with the blood in his system, but not entirely.

"There's another bag over there," I said weakly pointing towards the bag. "Drink it."

Winslow later drank the rest of the blood and continued to warm me up. He was now like a heater and I was able to go from freezing to cold now. He had a look of sorrow in his eyes as he warmed me up. I had asked him why he was so kind and it was because I reminded him of his ex-girlfriend. He felt he needed to protect me like he couldn't do for her.

 

I was curled up in Winslow's lap asleep when I heard a cell door open and close. My eyes fluttered open as I saw someone stab a syringe into Winslow's neck and then put it back into their pocket. I watched him carefully through my partially parted eyelids. I sat as still as I could and tried to breathe normally, but I knew my heartbeat gave me away. I learned from Winslow that vampires could hear your heartbeat.

The hooded figure stood over me for a couple of seconds before it leaned down close to me. I closed my eyes and kept breathing as normal as I could. I felt a cold hand touch my arm and drag their pointy nail over my skin light enough not to cause me to bleed. 

"Wakey, wakey," said a calm voice. "I know you're awake Eloise Wilson. Don't play silly human games with me." The person then grabbed my arm roughly and jerked me towards him. I cried out in pain but couldn't do much else. I was fatigued and weak from my lack of food and water.

"Aww, am I hurting you?" The vampire's nails dug into my skin and I yelped in pain.

"Winslow! Winslow!" I croaked out as I touched his sleeping body.

"He won't wake up for a while. Especially with the meds I gave him." The vampire laughed a sinister laugh that gave me goosebumps and chills down my spine.

I looked at them frozen in fear. I couldn't make out anything besides red, sinister eyes. "What do you want?" I said as my lips quivered from the cold and fear.

"Oh, just something quite simple really. I want you dead," They paused to lean closer to me. "Say, how do you want to die?"

I sat frozen in fear. I'd always read in books what it felt like, but it what I experienced was nothing like I've ever felt before. It was like winter, itself, had latched onto my body and froze everything except the loud pounding of my heart in my ears. I couldn't move, I couldn't speak, I could only hold my breath and watch as this vampire planned my demise.

"Why?" I asked in a whisper.

The vampire looked at me, "Kill one person to stop the other side from being stronger. Just trying to win a war here and you'll be one of many casualties."

My head was pounding and I could barely keep my head up, "Makes sense. Sad I couldn't see the world though. Guess I'll never see the new season of Supernatural War either." Now I was depressed that I'd miss seeing my favorite couple get together. I would miss the merchandise and my friends and family. "Damn it, I won't even get to receive my Amazon package!" I said sadly as I thought about my limited edition Supernatural War book coming in.

The vampire didn't say anything for a second before they grabbed my other arm roughly and pulled me up to standing. He slammed me against the iron bars, but I couldn't hold myself up so I immediately fell to the ground. The vampire walked into the light, and to my shock, was a female. She grabbed me by my arms again and put my hands in cuffs that hung from the ceiling that I hadn't noticed until now. It was still hard to see in the low lighting.

I could just barely touch the ground on my tippy toes and I was begging her not to kill me. She put her finger to my lips and shushed me. "I'll make it quick and painless, but before I do-" She licked her lips, "-I want to take a drink. I'm quite thirsty and I won't give up a free meal."

Unlike normal heroines in stories, I couldn't summon some random burst of energy to push her away. I sat helpless as she bit into my arm and drank my blood. It hurt kinda like a bee sting at first, but it soon turned to dull pain. I could feel my blood leave my body and the pain was getting increasingly worse.

My eyes were floating shut when the vampire lifted away from my arm and smiled at me. She was suddenly hit by something, but I couldn't keep my eyes open any longer. I was still awake, but I was getting tired really quickly. There was some scuffling and then the sound of a gate closing and running footsteps was heard, but I dozed off and I don't remember what happened.

I awoke to Winslow wiping his mouth of blood and looking at me with sorrowful eyes. "I'm sorry. I had to. I couldn't let you die," Winslow whispered to me as he started to cry. I laid on the cold stone with my head in his lap, but it didn't last for long because the cell door was opened again but this time by guards.

"Hey! What are you doing in here? I need help in here!" A guard yelled. I blinked and one moment I was being held by Winslow and the next I was handcuffed and forced to stand.

"Leave her alone! I had to! I couldn't let her die!" Winslow yelled as he tugged and pulled away from the guards restraining him. "Eloise!"

"Winslow?" I said in my confused state. I was being dragged away from him and I started to panic, "Winslow! Winslow, help!" I screamed. I could feel myself becoming more energized and the pounding headache I had disappeared. In the haze I realized he bit me not to take blood but to put his venom in me to save me.

"I'll come to you! I promise! Let me go!" He yelled as he struggled against the guards. He quickly faded out of sight and all I could hear was him shouting his promise to me over and over again and the curses of guards. A gate loudly slammed shut and then the hall went quiet again. People watched as we walked down the hallway. Some curious, some with bloodthirsty eyes, and some indifferent.

One of the guards pulled me to my feet and then pushed me in front of him, "Walk."

I turned around to meet his eyes, "Where are we going? What's going on?"

"It's your turn for trial. The king is waiting so let us not be late," said the second guard. My head was still hazy and my body felt like it had been pumped full of caffeine but without the side effects. The guards ushered me on and I walked quietly knowing I would either die or never be the same again once I walked into that room.


	12. Draven/Eloise

It has been 2 days since I last started the search for Eloise and the last time we made new ground was the first day of our search. We have all been working tirelessly to find out information about her kidnapper and her possible location, but nothing has come out of it. I've contacted some witch and werewolf friends to help in the search, but they always take forever to respond. So, now it was a waiting game.

The information we got from the trip to Eloise's house was beneficial, but lead to a dead end. The scout said that this vampire had left a blood mark similar to the vampire gang 'The Ghosts'. The Ghosts were one of the more active gangs and had the most members. They constantly had it out with the 'Daywalkers', another gang, and were in control of most of the underground operations. They often dealt with American mafia members in black marker deals but stayed out of the blood slave business. They were pretty impossible to track down because, as their name suggests, they almost didn't exist. 

Though, because of my job as King, I can find information on about anything. So, we quickly found the leader of The Ghosts and met up to talk. We offered immunity, of course, and anything they told us would be confidential. Their leader, a strong, black female by the name of Orena Bowman, was helpful in trying to track down the vampire who committed the crime. She said that, from the signature, the vampire was most likely Destin Tufa. He was a recently turned vampire and wouldn't conform to The Ghosts rules. They tried to help him out, but after 3 weeks he went insane and injured 3 vampires. They cast him out and gave him to my guards but after that, they know nothing of him.

We investigated into Destin Tufa but found he was nowhere in our prison system and no guards had been handed a hostile vampire recently. This immediately set off some alarms. Orena Bowman could have been lying, but we made it worth her while not to. Plus, I let them go free as long as they behave under our law. So, that means he either killed himself, is hiding, or someone took him. A hostile vampire is hard to control but can be used to cause mass destruction, especially in the human world. It is almost easier to manipulate a crazy vampire under your control than to help him become sane again.

Brahms made a note to investigate Destin Tufa later because his disappearance didn't settle well with us. This could just be a weird disappearance and those happen from time to time, but we needed to look into each and every case. But, until we found Eloise, his case wouldn't be a priority. I was at least notified that Christopher had made his way home and was now with his wife. They were safe and would be safe because I had people guarding them until further notice.

Now, we waited as scouts were sent out to try to either track a scent, investigate townspeople, or find people who might want to harm our deal with the United States government. Everything was chaotic but in an organized fashion and Brahms was doing an excellent job at getting reports in on time. Brahms had scouts come back every hour with their reports and any findings. It helped keep those in the special council updated and helped my nerves- though only slightly.

Though, as days flew by, my job as King couldn't be ignored and I needed to give those in jail their trial. I wasn't going to derail the justice of some vampires just to continue a search I knew was being handled well. What good can a kingdom be if they can't balance more than one thing at a time?

I sat in my throne and waited as the guards brought up the next vampire. He was short with blond hair smudged with dirt and grime. His green eyes looked dull in the light and he followed the guards quietly. He looked very tired and I could tell he needed blood badly.

"Guards, give him a blag of blood," I said as I motioned to the man. The man looked at me with a weak, but thankful smile and was soon handed a cup with blood.

He drank it all quickly but didn't waste a drop. He handed the guard the cup and thanked him before turning and bowing towards me, "Thank you, your Majesty. I am grateful." 

I nodded my head and then signaled for the trials to continue. His case was read and easily resolved with him being let free. He was going to be given a shower and some more food before he left and returned home. He served his time and punishment and there is no reason as to why he shouldn't be clean and fed when he left. I may be a hard King, but I am not going to treat my people like trash.

"Next," Yelled the guard beside me "prisoner #6659. Human." I was taken aback because I didn't get any reports of a new human prisoner.

The dark brown doors swung open and in walked the next to receive judgment. Her hair was matted and dirty and I could smell the dried blood from where I sat. She dragged her bare feet on the carpet and was pushed down onto her knees. The guards who brought her stood close by and monitored her every move. My hands clenched but I said nothing. The clothing she wore was covered in dirt, different types of blood, and urine and, by the faces the guards made, I knew they could smell it too.

But, underneath it all, I smelt something familiar. Something that smelt sweet, like walking into a candy store, but also salty like the sea. Once I focused on that smell all I could think about was Eloise. Eloise with her brown, shoulder-length hair and green-blue eyes. Her black rounded glasses that would turn into sunglasses in the sunlight. Eloise with her awkward laugh and shy smile, but her confidence in her abilities and her love of Chick-Fil-A.

That's when I stood up quickly, which alerted the guard next to me and those around the room. They all stood attentive and watched my every move. The guards grabbed the kneeling prisoner and pushed her further into the ground. You could cut the tension with a knife, but I wasn't worried about them. I walked down the marble stairs briskly and onto the carpet that she was pushed on. I approached where the prisoner sat face first in the ground and sniffed one last time. I was both furious and relieved. I had found her.

"Let her go. Now." I commanded. I could tell my eyes were red with fury from the look on the guard's face, but I wanted them to know how pissed I was. "Why the hell is she here!" I bellowed out. It echoed around the room and I knew I had frightened her when she started to shake. "Answer me!"

The guard who had stood next to me answered, "Sir, she was turned into the prison for looking out her window past the allotted time allowed to the humans and saw one of us." Little sobs sounded from Eloise.

I took a deep breath before I responded, "Is looking out the window a felony, soldier?" I angrily asked as I looked around the room. Some cowered backward, but most stuck their ground.

"No sir," answered the guard.

"So why is she here!" I yelled out. "Who brought her in? Who filed the report? Why weren't we notified that a human was put into the prison? And why is the kidnapped daughter of the United States ambassador sitting caked in blood and dirt on her knees in the middle of my castle?" The whole room went silent and I watched everyone's reactions for anything suspicious. "Get me Brahms, a doctor, and Ambassador Wilson on the phone immediately!" I bellowed out and watched as soldiers ran out of the room. A few soldiers stayed stiff as a board and the guards who brought Eloise in were shaking in fear. My personal guards waited until I gave my orders to them.

"Jury postponed. Get me the director of the prison," I commanded as I tried to calm myself down. Half of my personal guards left to follow my orders while the others stayed in their positions.

The guards who brought Eloise in were radiating fear and submission. I turned towards them and looked down on them, "Miles. Walker. I'll deal with you later. Bring them to the holding block and I will deal with them later." The other half of my personal guards moved and grabbed the soldiers arms and led them out.

I waited until the door closed before I crouched down and stared at Eloise who sat huddled on the floor. She was shaking and crying and I was trying not to cringe from the smell.

 

-Eloise-

 

I had my hand clamped over my mouth as I tried not to cry too loudly. I stayed huddled on the ground as tears streamed down my face. I refused to move even though I knew he was right in front of me. I was scared, embarrassed, cold, tired, weak, and felt like I was going to throw up. Between the venom, the person who just tried to kill me, my lack of blood, patience, headache, hunger, and everything else, I didn't want to deal with adding Mr. Goodwin- King Draven Goodwin- into it. My knees and feet were becoming numb from sitting on them, but I refused to move. I felt like my throat was closing up and I knew I was having a panic attack. So, instead of dealing with it like a rational person, I sat on the ground and cried. I couldn't handle it all.

"Eloise, are you okay?" His deep voice rumbled which gave him an angry tone.

I heard rustling and flinched when I felt something heavy placed over my body. It was warm and I wanted to touch it but refrained and kept myself huddled in a ball. I tried to stop my crying, but all I wanted was to see my parents and make sure nothing had happened to Winslow. I felt he was the only one I could trust, especially since I didn't know King Goodwins' intentions.

"We are calling your family now, you'll be home soon," King Goodwin's voice was softer now. "Eloise, let me see your face."

I didn't want to respond to him but, the human body is capable of remarkable things, and decided (without me) that it was okay to slowly uncurl from my spot on the ground. My bones popped and muscles stretched as I slowly sat up, but kept my face covered. I kept my face down as I grabbed what he put on my and wrapped it tightly around me. My matted hair made it almost impossible to see through, but I could see him crouched on the ground waiting for me to respond.

"Eloise, you're safe now. Let's bring you to get checked out," King Goodwin said softly, though his voice still held authority.

I shook my head. I would rather stay sitting on the uncomfortable ground than go with him. I'll wait until my parents get here.

"Can you say something so I know you're okay?" He asked as I still sat on the ground ignoring him.

I started hiccuping because I had wasted all my tears. I didn't trust him, but I wanted to make sure Winslow was okay. So, before I could formulate a sentence, I muttered out, "I want to see Winslow." My voice cracked and my tongue sat dryly in my mouth.

The King didn't say anything for a few seconds, "Winslow?"

"Get me Winslow, or I won't move," I said quietly. I wanted it to sound threatening, but I knew I just sounded like a toddler.

"Okay, I will get you Winslow. I will be right back Eloise," King Goodwin muttered before he stood up and left. When he walked past, Eloise could smell his cologne and relaxed. His cologne smelt great.

 

In the minutes that King Goodwin was gone, Eloise had resituated her self on the carpet to be more comfortable and realized the garment put over her was a cape. She tossed back he matted hair and looked around the shining room. A glorious chandelier hung from the ceiling and cast light on the room. The room itself was gorgeous covered with floor to ceiling windows draped over with a red curtain. The floor was a shining and probably newly polished marble. The carpet started about 15-30 feet before steps that lead up to the polished dark brown thrown. The throne itself was not that gloriously decorated, unlike the one beside it which was equal in size but decorated wonderfully. It had a different polish, a red-brown and had cushions that looked to be threaded in gold. On the top the thrones, words were inscribed. One throne said 'His Majesty' and the more decorated one said 'Her Majesty.'

No one else was in the room and the quiet was very welcomed. My headache insistently pounded, but at least the nauseous sensation had disappeared. The prison cells made it hard to sleep or even think because of the yelling and loud conversations of the inmates. All I had wanted for the past 3 days was a quiet room and some peace to collect myself.

But now, I was anxious to see Winslow. Last time I saw him was when I was being dragged away to a judgment that was never supposed to happen. Winslow screaming my name echoed through my head and his sorrowful eyes after he bit me still lingered in my mind. I looked down at my arms and pushed back the sleeve of my nightgown to reveal Winslow's bite mark. It had almost completely healed except for a scab and some dried blood, but I wasn't even mad about him biting me twice. He didn't take blood, or much blood, and did it to save my life. She was thankful for his help and wouldn't have survived without his help.

Just as I was about to fall asleep, the dark brown doors creaked open and in walked Winslow. Winslow growled at the guards behind him before he searched the room for a second and then laid his eyes on Eloise.

"Eloise!" He yelled happily. His British accent was heavy as he spoke, "You're safe! Thank goodness."

"Winslow!" I yelled excitedly as I stumbled up and ran towards him. I embraced him but, since he was in handcuffs, could only rest his head atop mine. "You're safe," I mumbled into his chest. He smelled like dirt and blood but it didn't matter because he was safe.

A cough broke my thoughts away from Winslow and towards King Goodwin, "Sorry to interrupt, but we must get you checked out by a doctor to make sure you're okay." He stepped to the side ushering us out of the room and into the hallway.

I stood close to Winslow and refused to look at King Goodwin. I could feel his gaze on me, but I was too angry and conflicted to bother with him. Winslow stood straight and proper even though he was chained in cuffs and made sure to give me a bright smile when I looked up at him. His presence was calming and it helped me feel like I wasn't entirely alone.

As King Goodwin lead the way, we got stares from guards and maids as they passed us. I didn't have to have vampire hearing to know they were talking about me. Though, I made sure to keep my distance from the King just in case anyone got any weird ideas. Winslow matched my slow pace, and I could tell was watching me to make sure I wouldn't collapse on him.

"So, what happened while we apart, dear El?" asked Winslow in a whisper I could barely hear.

"I'll tell you later. If I don't pass out that is," I said with a small smile. Winslow smirked and continued to look ahead of him.

"Good, I'll tell you something later as well," Winslow said with a mischievous smile. I looked at him confused but he just smiled and shrugged his shoulders.

In a few moments, we were suddenly inside what looked like a bedroom but was outfitted with medical supplies. In the corner stood a female doctor and a male nurse who was looking at a clipboard. When we walked in, they turned around and bowed to the King before looking at Winslow and I. The female didn't bat an eye at my appearance or smell, but I could tell the male nurse was slightly off-put.

"Hi! I'm Doctor Polly and this is nurse Noah. Miss Elise, why don't you come to have a seat over here for me so we can just make sure you're okay," The doctor smiled. Though she had good intentions, her smile with her elongated fangs made me unwary. I almost stepped backward, but Winslow stopped me and lead me over to the examination table. 

I said nothing as she examined me and glared at Winslow who only pretended to be occupied with a magazine sitting beside the table. I glanced up to find King Goodwin and saw him sitting in a chair across the room. He was bouncing his food up and down anxiously and had a serious look on his face. He had his head rested on one of his hands and stared into space. When he looked my way I quickly averted my gaze back to the doctor and her assistant. The doctor was blond with a streak of bright pink in her hair. She had a tattoo of an infinity symbol on her wrist and a wedding ring on her finger. She wore pink high heels and was about 5'7 (173cm), while her assistant had to be at least 6 feet (182cm) tall. He had a dark brown beard and probably worked out every day by the size of his muscles. His facial expression was always the same and never said a word except to respond to the doctor in short one-word answers.

"Okay, you're all done. Now, I'll need to get a lot of fluids in you since you are dehydrated and we also need to get some vitamins, minerals, and protein in you. You're starving but, since your stomach hasn't eaten in a couple of days, we will feed you some soup and bread for now. It's easier to digest," The doctor smiled at me before ushering the boys past a certain area before closing a curtain I didn't know was there. She turned to me and sat down in a chair with wheels and rolled over near me. "Now, I know you're probably in shock from everything so I just wanted to talk to you really quick. Is that okay?"

"Yes." I croaked out.

She smiled and handed me a water bottle, "Small sips." She waited as I took a couple of sips before speaking again, "I know you probably don't feel the best being covered in dirt, so do you want to come with me so we can rinse you off? I'll just help you wash your hair and detangle it, but if you need me I'll be right outside."

I slowly swallowed more water before answering, "Sure. Can I ask you something?"

"Sure. What's up?"

"Will being bitten by a vampire change me?" I asked quietly.

Her eyes softened, "No, as long as you don't die with vampire venom in your system then you won't change into one. Why?"

"N-Nothing, I was just curious," I said as I grabbed the arm Winslow had bit into to save me. I knew she was suspicious but decided to ignore it for now.

"What's your clothing size honey? I want to get you new clothes and undergarments that fit," We continued with small talk and other important information for a little while before she lead me into a bathroom that was attached to the bedroom. She was very sweet and calming and didn't intimidate me anymore. She asked me small questions as she thoroughly untangled and washed my hair.

 After she was done, I finished washing and then dressed in the clothes she put by the door. They fit nicely and would normally make me feel confident, but I looked like shit when I looked in the mirror and I honestly only wanted to survive this whole thing. Once I left the bathroom, Dr. Polly dried my hair and brushed it for me while we waited for some soup to be delivered for me.

"Knock Knock," said Winslow before he pushed aside the curtain. In one hand he balanced a tray with soup and a small cup filled with different pills. "I brought you a present. You can thank me later." I laughed and made a spot for Winslow to sit beside me. He handed me the tray with the food before he sat down beside me. Winslow brought his face to my ear and whispered, "Mr. Grumpy pants secretly wanted me to tell you to eat slowly so you don't get sick."

I looked at him confused then realized he was talking about King Goodwin, "Did he really say that?"

Winslow shook his head, "No, but the look on his face gave it all away. And, before you ask, he is currently talking to your father." I sighed and relaxed, but couldn't stop the tears from forming in my eyes. "Oh! Don't cry El!" Winslow said as he wrapped an arm around my shoulders and hugged me.

"Before you eat, let me hook this IV in you. It's filled with water so, instead of digesting it, your blood can just absorb it and go through your body quicker," said the nurse. I was shocked when I realized it was him. His voice wasn't as deep as I thought and I had barely heard him speak a word before.

Winslow stopped the nurse and glared at him for a second, "Let me see the bag."

The nurse showed him the bag of fluid and once Winslow was done with examining it, he nodded and let the nurse hook the IV in me. I gave him a questioning look, but he pretended not to notice and ushered me to eat once the IV was put in.


	13. Draven

While Doctor Polly and the nurse took care of Eloise, I went to my office to inform Brahms of all that had happened and stop the search for Eloise. Though, with one investigation ending another would soon start. I don't take threats and mistakes lightly, especially since this had suspiciously convenient timing. I would normally bring a matter like this up to the special counsel, but this involves sensitive information regarding Eloise and will only be discussed with a limited group.

On the way to my office, I heard maids and guards whispering about what had happened in the great hall. Apparently, I had made a bigger scene than I thought and that only made me angrier. Eloise was right under my nose the entire time, but I hadn't done everything I could for her. Because of my ignorance, she almost died and her death would be on my hands. I would have jeopardized my relationship with Christopher and possibly our latest deal. I was careless and it was a mistake I will regret.

By the time I entered my room, Brahms and the prison director were already there. Brahms stood by the window biting his nails and watched the prison director, who wore handcuffs, like a hawk. Brahms immediately turned and bowed while the prison director stumbled up and muttered apologies.

"I will deal with you later, Farlo. Wait in the morning room for further instructions," I said as I went to my desk and sat down. The man bowed repeatedly as he walked back towards the door. He then shut the door and the room was plunged into silence.

"Draven, what happened? Everyone has been saying you found Eloise, is it true?" Brahms asked as he stood by my desk.

I rubbed my head with my hands and tried to calm myself, "Yes. We found her."

Brahms looked at me curiously, "That's good news, so why are you pissed off?"

I stood up abruptly and angrily pushed things off my desk. The papers fluttered in the air and items scattered and either broke or crashed loudly on the wooden floor. Brahms stood by my desk unfazed and watched as I broke things. After I had destroyed most of the room in anger, I took a deep breath and was able to calm myself. I looked around at the mess I made and saw that it would have to be entirely redecorated. The curtains were slashed and some hung from thing strings, the tables and chairs were broken into tiny pieces, but some major parts were sticking out of the wall and couch cushions. The desk had been bashed in and was now two pieces and the hardwood flooring was scratched and broken in some places. The cabinet had its doors ripped off, but the liquor inside was safe. Besides the liquor, the only things not broken were Brahms and the painting of my parents that hung on the wall untouched.

"Well fuck," I said as I looked around the room.

Brahms let out a loud laugh, "It was time it got redecorated." He paused as he set his papers down on my chair and walked over to me, "What happened?"

"I was judging whether prisoners get out or get extra time, like usual, when this disheveled and awful smelling human walks into the room. But, we were never notified of a new human prisoner, so that was my first red flag. But, when I was smelling the air, I smelt Eloise. I apparently made a big scene and now we have 3 people under custody and another investigation on our hands. She almost died Brahms. I don't know how she survived, but she looks terrible and weak. She had cuts all over her and she was bleeding from multiple places. I could've saved her if I had just checked the prison," I leaned against the window and cursed myself.

Brahms put his hand on my shoulder, "It isn't your fault. We will get to the bottom of this. You found her at least, now you can help her get home."

"I want her here. They can't protect her and that school she goes to definitely cannot save her if something attacked," I said as I started picking up broken pieces of furniture. I looked at the couch and sighed; I loved that couch.

"I know you do, but you can't disrupt her entire life. She hasn't even graduated high school. I'm sure you can talk specifics out with her father and come up with an idea. He is a level headed man, he will understand," Brahms said as he helped me.

A knock on the door sounded and made us stop. Brahms looked at me curiously, but I had no clue who could be at the door. I walked across the destroyed pieces of furniture and over towards the door. When I opened it, I saw the face of that hideous vampire who has stolen the affections of Eloise.

"King Draven, lovely to see you. May I speak with you?" Winslow said as he smiled at me. I glared at him but made way for him to walk in. He nodded at Brahms and chuckled at the destroyed room, "I love the new design of this room. Who did you get to design it?"

"Get to the point Winslow," I said angrily. Just his presence made me want to gut him.

The smile quickly disappeared from his face and his whole demeanor changed, "We have a problem here. Bigger than you know." He was practically a new person. I raised my head in challenge. This was an interesting new development. So the perfect Winslow isn't so perfect after all.

"What do you mean?" Brahms asked.

"Well, if you promise to let my court case drop, then I'll tell you all what happened to poor Eloise as we were down there," He smiled and leaned on the broken desk. He tore a chunk of the desk off and threw it behind it.

"Fine. Your case will be dropped and you're freed of all charges. Now, what happened with Eloise?" I asked as I watched him walk around the room.

"She was first brought here 4 nights ago but didn't wake up until the next morning. She was knocked out cold and I don't know who deposited her there because I was at court with you. She awoke when the guards slammed my gate shut and started to freak out. She almost passed out, but I managed to help her calm down with some-" He smiled, "persuasive tactics." My jaw clenched, but I said nothing. "I spent most of my time in her cell because, poor thing, almost froze to death. I actually learned a lot about her during our time together, but she felt deeply betrayed by you, King Draven. She thinks you kidnapped her on purpose to keep her here and that you're some sort of pedophile." He paused as he examined my liquor cabinet. Brahms chuckled but cleared his throat to stop himself. "Though, this is where the problem comes in. She said she was inside her room with the blinds closed and window locked. So, that person was specifically targeting her. She said he entered her room after she got on the phone with 911 and made a loud noise. Then, our second problem was that no guards wandered the halls of our section during our 3-day stay. The only guard that walked past ignored Eloise's plea and read her file saying she was supposed to 'starve until her trial.' He threw her a bag of blood, but of course, that wouldn't help her. Oh, and don't freak out if you see 3 bite marks on her. One is from me the first day she was in prison, 1 from an assassin, and another one from me."

I put my hand up, "You bit her? Twice!" I started towards him but Brahms stopped me, "Think about this rationally, Draven. He did it to save Eloise and not harm her. Without him, she would've died. Calm down."

Through gritted teeth, I responded, "Did you say assassin?"

"Yes, last night I was injected with a hardcore sleeping serum, but, since Eloise had given me two bags of blood, the effects wore off quickly. Though, when I woke up it was bad. Eloise was hung up by her arms and a female vamp with a cloaked scent was drawing blood from her. I was able to fight her off, but before I could take off the hoodie and see who they were the guards came and she escaped. I had to bite her to save her. I'm sorry Draven, but it had to be done. She wouldn't have survived and I'm sure her body is still in shock. Just give her time and explain what's going on. Don't leave her out of what's going on because she won't like that," Winslow said before he sniffed a bottle of liquor and put it back.

I clenched my hands and bit my lip. It all didn't make sense. Nothing made sense. I was angry that someone hurt her not once, but twice, and I couldn't do anything to stop it. I punched the bookshelf next to me and the books all tumbled off and landed on the floor.

"Is she okay?" I asked as I faced the window and stared at the reflection of myself. Pitiful.

"For now. She was definitely in shock 2 days ago, but, regarding the assassination attempt, I don't think it has sunken in yet. I would try explaining everything to her and her father. It will be a huge shock for both of them, but you can't have them ignorant. Ignorance will only get them hurt in the future," Winslow said as he picked up some fallen books and stacked them. "Don't get me wrong, I care for Eloise as a sister and want no harm to come to her. But, that doesn't mean I won't refrain from protecting her, even if it's from you. I don't understand why I feel I need to protect her, but it's just how I feel. Eloise needs you and me to help her understand the situation she is in. She trusts me and will come to trust you too," Winslow said as he stacked books. I watched him from the corner of my eye. He didn't seem cocky like earlier; he seemed like he was when I first met him.

"Winslow, can you bring Eloise some soup from the kitchen? Also, some vitamins to take," Brahms asked as he stood beside me. His eyes watched Winslow and me carefully. I stopped biting my lip and nodded in thanks towards Brahms.

"Of course. I'll let her know that the King wanted to apologize," Winslow said as he walked out the door. I stared at the door and said nothing as it closed. I looked around the room and sighed in defeat. This is a mess.

 

 

Brahms got another phone for me to use, since I crushed my other one, and quickly set up a call between Christopher and I. He answered immediately and seemed very tired, "Did you find her?"

"Yes, she is safe with me," I said as I walked down the hall. I knew he would want to talk to his daughter.

"Can I talk to her?" Christopher asked quickly. "They found her!" He yelled and a chorus of crying and cheers erupted from the other end.

"Of course. Though, we have some important things to discuss when you get here. One being Situation R.F.V." I said in a low whisper.

"Already? Okay, I'll be there as soon as I can," Christopher said quietly.

"She is safe, Christopher. Injured, but safe," I said before I pushed open the door Eloise was situated in. Christopher said nothing in reply but stayed on the line.

When I entered the room, the smell of scented shampoo and warm soup filled the air. I was easily able to see Eloise who was curled up on the couch with a blanket wrapped around her shoulders. She was slowly eating her soup as Brahms and Dr. Polly talked. When they noticed my presence, Dr. Polly and Brahms bowed, but Eloise only cast a side glance.

"Leave us," I said as Brahms walked in behind me and held the door open. Dr. Polly quickly exited while Winslow said something quietly to Eloise and then walked away. Eloise shrank back on the couch and pulled more blankets towards her. She was shivering and her arms were covered with goosebumps. I shrugged off my jacket and draped it over her shoulders before I sat down across from her. Brahms stood in the corner and was texting on his phone.

"Eloise, your dad wants to speak to you," I said as I extended the phone towards her. Her head immediately shot up and she looked at me with hope and reluctance. I held it out to her more and she took it quickly.

"Mom? Dad?" She asked as she held the phone tightly in her hands. I tuned out their conversation to give them some privacy and went to get her some tissues. Brahms gave me a quick smile assuring me that I did well and went back to his phone. I leaned on the wall and waited until she finished talking to her parents. 

I couldn't help but watch her though. Tears streamed down her face and she clutched my jacket for warmth. She had a bright smile on her face even though she sobbed and her nose quickly became stuffy. She rambled off responses as she heard the voice of her loved ones and smiled. For someone who was almost killed by an assassin and almost starved to death, she was still able to put a smile on her face. She probably doesn't realize what happened or where she is. She's oblivious and innocent and I wish it could stay that way. Innocence looks best on a young girl but so does a smile.

 

 


	14. Eloise

I looked at King Goodwin and then back at his phone. He said my dad was on the phone, but he could be tricking me. His face was void of emotion and his eyes were dull except for a slight twitch. He held it out to me again and I decided to take the chance. I quickly grabbed the phone and held it to my ear. "Mom? Dad?" I asked as tears sprung to my eyes.

King Goodwin got out of his seat across from me and walked towards a guy in the corner. The man in the corner had blond hair and green-blue eyes. He was about 6 feet tall and a nonchalant vibe about him. He kept his face neutral except for the gleam of happiness in his eyes as he texted. He was very handsome and I would've definitely saved him to my "Hot Guyzzz" Pinterest board. I mean it would be the same for King Goodwin, but I didn't like his personality.

"Sweetie?! Are you alright?" My dad's deep voice sounded through the phone. 

I started crying and grabbed onto the jacket, "Dad!" My dad started asking me questions and soon I heard the voices of everyone I loved: my grandparents (on my mom's side), Glen and Seth, Jarry and Timothy, Daniel, Ms. Shepard, Ms. Catherine, and finally my mom. I started sobbing in relief as was handed a tissue. I looked up through my blurry vision and mouthed 'thank you' to King Goodwin.

I don't know how long I stayed on the phone but, by the time we reluctantly ended the call, his phone was almost dead and I was hungry. I set the phone down beside me and dried my eyes. My family was safe and sound and everyone missed me dearly. Mom said that dad was on his way over and that I'd be home in the next day or so. Also, apparently it was Monday afternoon and the school held a mass hoping that I'd be returned safely. I relaxed against the back of the seat and closed my eyes. I would probably need therapy after this.

"Eloise, may I speak with you?" said a deep voice. I jumped and quickly focused my eyes on King Goodwin.

I nodded and adjusted myself on the couch, but I made sure to not leave him any space to sit beside me. I sat up straight and watched him. My cracked glasses lense was getting easier to see through but it was still a pain and gave me a slight headache.

He sat down in a seat across from me and stared at me for a second before he cleared his throat, "Are you hungry? Do you need anything?"

I bit my lip and debated on whether or not to tell him I was hungry, but my stomach growled and I felt like I was going to be sick. "How about I get you some more soup? What's your favorite?"

I looked down at the I.V. in my arm. I was uncomfortable and I really wanted to itch it. "Potato or Chicken and Dumpling," I mumbled in a low whisper.

"Okay, I'll get that ordered for you. I'll be right back," King Goodwin said as he stood up and walked out the room. He soon returned and sat down in the seat across from me. I picked up his now dead phone and handed it to him. "Thanks," he said as he slipped it into his pocket.

The room was silent for a few awkward minutes before he finally decided to speak, "Do you know where you are?"

I nodded, "The Vampire Kingdom Kovia. Winslow told me."

He nodded, "So you know about us? About me? About your friend Winslow?" He acted like he was talking to a scared, ignorant child. I might be scared, but I am not a child.

I took a deep breath and looked at him angrily, "Of course I know! I was kidnapped by a vampire, trapped in a vampire prison, saved and bit by a vampire, and almost assassinated by a vampire! I'm not an idiot. And don't bring Winslow into this!" I huffed angrily and looked away, but realized I had snapped at the vampire King. I blushed and cleared my sore throat.

"Well, I'm glad you know. I assume you also know who I am, so I would like to reintroduce myself. I am King Draven Goodwin of the vampire kingdom Krovia," he said proudly as he outstretched his right hand. I looked at his hand and then down to my right arm. I couldn't really shake his hand because my right arm had the I.V in an awkward spot. He noticed my glance and switched his arms. I shook his hand but looked away. His looks were a distraction.

I blushed and awkwardly kept shaking his hand. What was I supposed to say?

"When your dad gets here, I would like to have a conversation with both of you. We have a lot to discuss and it is very urgent. Is that okay with you?" King Draven asked after he stopped shaking my hand. I really just wanted to go home and sleep, but I nodded an pulled the blankets closer to me. He smirked and looked down at me. I swallowed and looked around the room trying to avoid making eye contact with him. "Is there anything you need?"

I briefly looked back at him and thought for a second, "Um, no sir. I'm okay."

"You can call me Draven. No need to be so formal with me Eloise," King Draven said as he stood up. I found myself staring and had to clear my throat. My new sexuality is men in suits.

"Would you come with me for a minute?" He asked as he walked towards the door. His friend still stood in the corner texting but this time with a blush on his cheeks.

I bit my lip and looked down at my bare feet, which were cold from the stone floor, and then at my arm with the I.V. in it.

The man in the corner laughed, "You surely didn't think that through Draven." He put his phone in his pocket and stood up. Even across the room, I could tell he was at least over 6 feet tall. "You want the girl who has no shoes on and an I.V. in her arm to follow you. Man, you're at your peak today."

King Draven's back was to me, "I was talking to you, you idiot. We need to go get her some shoes and see if she is okay to be taken off the I.V. Let us give Eloise some alone time." He then walked briskly out the room with the man following him.

The man turned back around to look at me and smiled, "Don't worry about him. He's just in a bad mood. I'm Brahms by the way." He exited before I could say anything. The door slammed shut as I mumbled a greeting.

I sighed and shrugged all the blankets off of me except the jacket. The jacket was still warm from when King Draven was wearing it and smelled awesome. I don't know what cologne he uses, but I like it a lot. I put on the jacket and placed my feet onto the cold stone flooring. It took me a moment to adjust before I stood up slowly. I wobbled on my weak legs and had to grab onto the I.V. stand so I didn't fall over. My head swam as the blood rushed back into my limbs and I closed my eyes to calm myself.

Once I was adjusted, I walked around the room and inspected things. Dragging the I.V. stand around with me was bothersome, but the bag was almost half empty anyway. I walked over to the window and couldn't see much because it was dark outside, but I could see candlelight in windows a good distance away. I sighed and tried to make out other things, but my eyes were tired and my glasses were dirty and cracked in the corner. Though, from what I could see, it was very pretty with the candlelight illuminating and casting shadows. I wish I had my camera.

The door opened and I turned around to see King Draven, Brahms, and Winslow all walk into the room. I swallowed and turned around to look out the window again; why are they all so hot?

"Doctor says that she will check up on you in a few minutes to see if you can be taken off the I.V., but, until then, we should keep you warm and resting," said Winslow.

I hummed and continued to ignore the men behind me. I was really in a vampire castle with a vampire king and a bunch of vampires where I was almost assassinated by a vampire. I was going to have a serious headache after this. I shifted my cold feet on the stone floor and hummed a melody in my head. I was itching to write my story or to finish reading the book I had in my backpack.

"I've brought you some socks and shoes. Hopefully, they fit, but if they don't let me know and I can find you another pair," this time I looked back and noticed it was King Draven who had said something. He held a pair of white socks and saddle oxfords in his hands. He walked towards me and ushered me to the couch. I sat down and he started to untie the laces of the saddle oxfords while I put on the socks. I looked up and noticed that Brahms was watching King Draven with a smirk on his face. Winslow stood where I was by the window with his backs towards us.

Once I had put on my socks, I reached for the shoes but King Draven gently stopped my hand. I blushed as I let him take my leg and put the shoes on for me. He tied the laces and his face was surprisingly serene. I had to pretend to cough so I could cover my mouth and flaming red cheeks. As soon as he finished my feet already felt warmer in the socks and saddle oxfords that were just a little too big. Ironically, these were the same shoes I had to wear for school, so I was used to the stiffness an lack of padding in the shoes. 

"Thank you, King Draven," I said as I looked awkwardly away.

"Call me Draven, Eloise. But, if you're more comfortable with calling me by more formal name then that is okay," he said as he straitened up and looked at me. 

When my eyes caught his I couldn't help but stare. His eyes were gray-blue and beautiful as the dim light shimmered off them. He seemed surprised that I had actually met his gaze and quickly looked away. I still watched him amazed at how pretty his eyes were. I never noticed before, probably because I was distracted by trying not to let the people at my school down since he was going to be a big donor.

The door opened and in walked Dr. Polly. She cast quick glances at everyone in the room before smiling at me. "So, how are we feeling?" She asked as she made her way over to me.

I explained how I felt better, but walking was a little tough. She nodded and explained how I would be feeling off since I had a lack of vitamins, minerals, water, and I was probably getting rid of the vampire poison in my veins. I nodded and pretended that having vampire poison in my veins was normal, but internally I was freaking out on whether I would die. Once she took the I.V. out of my arm and said that I would need to come back in about 20 minutes so that I could rest and have another small meal.

She made sure to emphasize the 20 minutes to the men around the room as she put a cotton ball over where the I.V. needle was and then a bandage. She helped me stand and then did some final checks before she walked out of the room. I bit my lip and watched as the men around the room looked at each other like they were speaking some silent language.

"Let us go see someone, Eloise. It will be quick and then we can go to the library. I've heard from Winslow that you enjoy books," said King Draven as he walked over to me. "Will you need help walking?"

I looked at Winslow and he smiled a soft smile at me and walked over, "I'll help her if she feels weak. Can you hold the door open for us?" Draven's face went blank before he nodded and walked towards the door.

I felt more comfortable around Winslow, but seeing the drastic change in King Draven made me feel sad. I don't know why, but I kind of liked him next to me. I think it's because his cologne smells fantastic.

  

We walked slowly down the corridor with Winslow on my right, King Draven on my left, and Brahms in front of us leading the way. We didn't say anything as we walked down the hallway, but I was fine with just observing our surroundings. The stone floor was covered with a beautiful red carpet with intricate designs running all through it. I wanted to touch it because it seemed very soft. The walls had an occasional painting of something or someone and there were many windows. I couldn't see outside because of how dark it was, but I could tell just by the size of this hallway that the place was huge. Candelabras were everywhere and the candlelight cast shadows on the walls. Maids hurried by every once in a while and bowed towards the King. I noticed their eyes linger on me, but I looked away from their curious gazes. I was too nervous and tired to care.

I starting feeling tired and so I tapped Winslow's arm. He looked down at me curiously before he nodded in understanding. "When will we arrive? Eloise is starting to grow weary," Winslow said as he watched me carefully. He was kind of like the older brother I never had (who also happened to be over 100 years old).

"We are almost there. The study is closer, but it is currently" King Draven looked at Brahms, "-under construction."

I wanted to ask what was wrong with the study, but I decided to keep my mouth shut. I just wanted to go to the library. Since he's as old as dirt, he should have some rare books collected. Maybe he has one of the first editions of _The Scarlet Letter_ by Nathaniel Hawthorne? It happened to be one of my favorite classics along with _Pride and Prejudice_ by Jane Austen and many others. They are difficult to read but are a joy once you understand how to read the language. I've read many of the classics because of English class throughout the years, but I want to read many more:  _Frankenstein, Wuthering Heights, Jane Eyre, Adventures of Sherlock, the Aeneid, the Odessey_ , and many more. I could read all day.

I yawned as we entered a set of double doors that were guarded by 4 soldiers. 2 on each side who wore no armor and had an iron sword strapped to their waste. They wore a sash, each decorated with different pins, buttons, and medals, and stood with no emotion on their faces. They bowed to their king and then held open the double doors. King Draven moved from my side and stood in front of me as we walked into the room. Brahms waited until we passed before he closed the doors behind us. I turned my head around slightly to see that he wasn't following us but instead standing guard at the door.

I looked around the room and noticed it was also gloriously decorated with furniture, decorations, and lavish items from all different eras. There were paintings of landscapes and people and objects hanging on the walls along with candle holders. But, the candles inside the candleholders were different. They cast more light than the others and didn't cast dancing shadows across the wall. When I squinted my eyes, I realized that the candles in this room were electric candles. The castle had electricity! (Or partial electricity).

There was a dark green carpet which covered the smooth stone floor and sitting atop the carpet were chairs that probably dated back to the 50's and 60's. They seemed dusty, along with the rest of the room, and I knew that I would start sneezing and itching as soon as I sat down. Stupid allergies. 

Though, we weren't the only ones in the room. In the room sat the two soldiers who dragged me away from Winslow in the dungeon and into, where I believed, my demise. I bit my lip and walked backward a step. Winslow caught my arm and looked at me with calm eyes. I looked at him like he was crazy and he ignored me. He dragged me over to a chair that was less dusty and sat me into it. He stood beside me and didn't say a word as I started to fidget. The King sat beside me in the middle of a couch and Brahms stood by the door.

The guards fidgeted just like I did and kept avoiding the gaze of the King.

"Now," King Draven said as he adjusted himself on the couch. His face became hard and serious and it was both scary and sexy, "we are here to discuss why you saw no problem with a human being in the vampire dungeon. Before we start, any questions?" The guards looked at each other nervously but shook their heads. "Good. Let's begin."

  

 


	15. Eloise

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is shortened due to time issues. The book will soon be getting a full remodel and reorganization. Lots of new things will be added, characters re-introduced, and important plot changes.
> 
> After this chapter I will be updating, reorganizing, and editing the book. I want to have the beginning planned right so I can continue the story in a way that it flows and there isn't anything confusing. Things will be added, deleted, etc... but I will try my best to get it done as soon as I can. I'm excited to continue writing!!!

"Good, let's begin," King Draven said with a menacing smile on his face. I swallowed and started fidgeting with the sleeves on his jacket, which was way too big. The guards straightened their backs but kept their gazes lowered. "I wanted to introduce you to Eloise, the daughter of the American diplomat," King Draven said with a confident smirk. I jumped slightly at his mention of me and my dad. I looked at him confused for a second because my dad wasn't an American diplomate. My dad was just an advisor for some congressman, not a diplomate. 

King Draven ignored my curious gaze and watched as the soldier briefly looked over at the small and homely looking girl. To them, she was weak, small, powerless, and completely human. She looked ill and, even though she had a shower, dirty. She wasn't skinny, wasn't pretty, wore cracked glasses, and was constantly nervous. They felt powerful standing over her, yet they cowered at the meer gaze of the angry King.

I said nothing as the king continued to speak, "Eloise, this is Corporal Miles Jones and Cadet Walker Cox. They escorted you from your cell to the great hall, correct?"

"Yes," I said hesitantly, unsure as to where he was going.

King Draven stared at me with agitated eyes, "Can you recall exactly what happened from when they grabbed you from your cell?"

I swallowed at looked up at Winslow for assistance but he shrugged and looked away. I looked back at King Draven, then the guards. The guard Corporal Miles Jones was taller than Cadet Walker Cox. Miles Jones had short, red hair and freckles spotted all over his face. His eyes were a deep green and he had a messy scar on his cheek. It seemed very old and I'm surprised it didn't heal with him being a vampire. He was skinny, but definitely had muscles that popped under the shirt. He had no weapon that I could see, but he probably didn't need one since he was a vampire. Walker Cox was only a couple inches taller than me (I am 5 feet 2 inches) but wasn't the skinniest fellow. He had dark brown hair and dark brown eyes that reminded me of my moms. Even though he wouldn't be considered skinny, that didn't mean he didn't look cute. His skin had a slight tan and you could tell he was stronger than Miles. He seemed like he would be into comic books and cons, which I love. I personally thought they were both cute though.

I cleared my throat and looked at the green carpet, "After Winslow saved me, the guards started busting through my cell and pulled Winslow away from me. I was really dizzy so I don't remember everything, but Miles and Walker started dragging me away while Winslow yelled after me. Three or four guards shoved Winslow back into his cell as I was dragged away. After we were out of the prison, those guards let me gain my footing but kept quiet the entire time."

"Were they rough?" King Draven asked me with intense eyes.

I looked at the guards and noticed the frantic look in their eyes, "A little, but it was probably because I couldn't stand straight. I don't remember much clearly. I'm sorry." 

"Please don't apologize, Eloise," King Draven said with calm but serious eyes. The soldiers gave each other a weird look and it felt like they were having their own conversation. "Thank you. Now," King Draven leaned forward and stared at Corporal Miles and Cadet Walker intently. The King's eyes, in the blink of an eye, turned from gray-blue to deep red. I blinked in surprise and leaned forward in my seat to make sure I was seeing things correctly. His eyes glowed in the lighting and were something that I wanted to stare at forever. 

I felt a hand on my shoulder and jumped out of my daze. Winslow looked at me with playful eyes and whispered into my ear, "Don't look into his eyes. You'll be entranced." 

I mouthed back, _that's a thing?_

Winslow held in chuckled as he straightened back up. He nodded and made his facial expression blank again.

I watched as King Draven entranced the soldiers with his glowing eyes and confident expression. He started asking them basic questions like their name first, their position, and if they had something. I couldn't understand what he said because it was in a different language.

I take Latin and the hardest part of that class is when we do a translation with our dictionaries. We don't have orals, tests are rare, and the teacher is really fun. She understands that Latin is a dead language, so she isn't so uptight about us knowing how to speak it or know everything about it. Though, she can get mad when we forget things. Thank God for an easy language class. 

The soldiers sat with their back erect and expression blank. Their eyes were clouded over and their heads bobbed back and forth. They were relaxed and their limbs hung by their side or in their lap.

I felt goosebumps on my sky and instinctively grabbed my arms. It was suddenly cold and ominous in the room. The lightbulbs flickered and the shadows danced across the walls. I watched as King Draven smirked and controlled them. He leaned confidently back on the couch and starting man-spreading. He was self-assured and bold and no one moved or said a thing.

I got butterflies in the bottom of my stomach and I felt nervous and King Draven's eyes flickered into a bright red. His voice had a deep rumble to it that, if I wasn't a little scared, I would find very sexy.

"Who told you it was time for her trial?" King Draven said as his eyes glimmered. I couldn't help but look at his eyes, but I made sure I looked away as to not become entranced.

"Farlo gave us the lists of the prisoners who were to have their trial today. He said nothing about her being human. I did think it was weird that we were not informed she was a human. I was more concerned that a vampire prisoner with blood on his mouth was holding her as she was bleeding from the wounds in her arms," said Miles in a monotone voice. His head bobbed from side to side like there was a silent tune in the air.

"Walker? Anything to say?"

"I believe Farlo is innocent. He doesn't make the lists or check them. He just sees where the prisoner's cells are and then gives the list to us," Walker said in a monotone voice as his head too bobbed to a silent tune.

"I didn't ask for your opinion." I looked at King Draven like he was crazy for saying something so rude. He cast a side glance at me but quickly looked away. He cleared his throat and I knew he saw the weird look I gave him. "Thank you for the information, is there anything you'd like to tell me?"

"There were traces of another vampire in the cell Eloise was in beside the vampire who was holding her. Also, there were cuffs covered in Eloise's blood hanging from the ceiling of the cell. The door to her cell is also damaged and we found a trace of blood in the cell possibly from the other vampire. If you'd like, we can go retrieve the blood," Miles said as the cloudiness in his eyes disappeared and he fixed his posture. His green eyes found mine but quickly looked away.

"Brahms,' said King Draven as he continued to stare at the soldiers.

"Yes, my King?" said Brahms as he walked away from the door and to King Draven's side.

"Get me the blood sample from the cell and send it," King Draven commanded as he stood up from the couch. I watch him with curious and awestruck eyes. Damn, he is tall and my type.

"Yes, my King," Brahms repeated as he then bowed and quickly walked out the room. I wonder where they were going to send the blood test.

"Thank you for all your help gentleman. You are let off the hook, but next time something like this happens there will be consequences. Tell the soldiers to expect a briefing soon," King Draven said as his eyes changed back to normal and the soldiers became themselves again. Miles looked at me and smiled a soft smile before he stood up with Walker and bowed to the King.

King Draven walked briskly toward the door and it swung open on its own. I jumped, startled by the sudden movement of the door. I blinked a few times in surprise and looked up at Winslow who only gave me a reassuring smile and helped me stand. The King waited outside the door while Winslow and I slowly walked. My legs felt like jelly and I was mostly leaning on Winslow in order to walk. I felt the blood rushing into my legs and was soon able to walk more steady.

When we made it into the hallway, I looked back one more time to look at Miles and Walker who stood still by the couch. I caught the eye of Miles before the door miraculously slammed shut. I stood in place as I tried to comprehend how the door could close so suddenly on its own.

"Winslow, do vampires actually have powers like in the books and movies?" I asked as we made our way down the dark hallway. People passed and stared, but I was more concerned with trying to figure out the whole vampire situation.

It wasn't Winslow who answered but the King, "Some do, some don't. It's all a matter of blood type and who your sire is."

"Sire as in the person who changed you, correct?" I asked as we walked down the endless hallway. I caught the eye of two maids who walked down the hallway with old fashion dusters in their hands. They gave me a small smile and got back to dusting a candle holder.

"Correct. Humans do have some things about the vampire race correct, but most are fictitious. I can explain later as we have arrived at our destination," King Draven stopped in front of two grand doors who were already open, but the inside was dark.

I tried to see into the room, but it was too dark. The King walked ahead of us into the darkness and Winslow pulled me inside the darkness as well. There were windows high on the wall that cast dark light across the room. The light cast some of King Draven into view. He looked handsome in the light that shined on him but also mysterious. He looked behind at me and smirked. He reached his hand by his face and flashed a toothy and confident smile at me before he snapped his fingers and light suddenly filled the room.


End file.
